During qualifying of the Canadian Grand Prix, the last part was driven on a drying track. George Russell took the gamble to screw softs under his Mercedes towards the end of Q3, but according to Max Verstappen the track was still too wet in many places.
Verstappen says after qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix during the FIA Press Conference That he never thought about slicks for a moment. For a long time he was experimenting with the right racing line and trying to make the tires work. When it got drier the tyres finally started to work. "Then it was fun to drive," says Verstappen.
No gamble taken by Verstappen
Russell took a big gamble by fitting soft tires on his Mercedes in the second half of Q3. The Briton already spun in Turn 2 during his first fast lap, so the choice did not seem like a smart move. "It was just too wet in some places, like Turn 1, Turn 2. I think out of 4 all the way into 5, into 6. So, for me, it was never on," Verstappen says of the possible switch to dry weather tires.
"Also to manage your Inter over a lap was, you know, quite a handful." However, the Red Bull Racing driver does admit that in some areas of the 4.3-kilometer circuit it would be doable on slicks.