George Russell will start from pole position in the Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday. During the qualifying round in Montreal, the Mercedes driver proved to be the fastest on the field, ahead of Max Verstappen. Both drivers made their mark on medium tires.
Q1: Albon Causes Red Flag
The most thrilling moment in Q1 is credited to Alex Albon. The hood of his Williams car is blown off with considerable force while traveling at high speed on the long straight stretch of the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. This leads to a red flag, but Albon still qualifies for the next session. The same goes for Max Verstappen, who initially waits a long time to set a fast lap.
Eliminated: Bortoleto, Sainz, Stroll, Lawson, and Gasly.
Q2: Medium Tires Impress
Verstappen shows himself to be very fast early on in the second part of the qualifying round. He does this on medium tires. Only when Charles Leclerc is fast on soft tires does someone overtake him on the soft tire. After that, it’s the medium tire that impresses again: George Russell also proves to be fast on the rubber with the yellow sidewall, although he doesn’t seem to be a candidate for pole in Canada yet. Yuki Tsunoda, however, is eliminated in Q2: he finishes eleventh.
Eliminated: Tsunoda, Colapinto, Hülkenberg, Bearman, and Ocon
Q3: Russell Surprises with Fastest Time
The first blow is worth a proverbial fortune, and in Q3, it’s for Verstappen. He outperforms everyone in the first run of Q1, but the difference is only 0.025 seconds compared to McLaren driver Oscar Piastri. So, it comes down to the second run, and in it, Verstappen and Russell opt for the medium tire. Like a bolt from the blue, it’s the Brit who then secures the pole position in Canada. Verstappen comes in second, followed by Piastri in third, and Antonelli in fourth.
