Russell storms to Canadian GP pole with stunning lap in Montreal

Mercedes flexed their muscles in Q1, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli topping the session thanks to an impressive 1:13.380 on the soft tyre. The two McLarens followed closely behind, with Lando Norris edging out his teammate, while Isack Hadjar continued to impress in fourth place.

The two Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc finished fifth and sixth respectively, while Arvid Lindblad carried on his strong weekend with an encouraging seventh-fastest time. George Russell could manage only eighth, just ahead of Max Verstappen in ninth, with Carlos Sainz completing the top 10. Gabriel Bortoleto narrowly scraped through in 16th place, securing the final spot available for Q2, with Audi successfully managing to get both cars into the next stage of qualifying.

These are the drivers who were eliminated and failed to make it through to Q2: Alex Albon, Fernando Alonso, Sergio Perez, Lance Stroll and Valtteri Bottas, who qualified last.

Hadjar continued to impress by setting the fastest time in Q2 with a superb 1:12.975, finishing ahead of an excellent Hamilton and Lando Norris. The two Mercedes cars followed in fourth and fifth, with Antonelli once again ahead of Russell. The field was incredibly tight, with the top five separated by just a tenth of a second.

Piastri ended the session in sixth, while Verstappen continued to struggle compared to his teammate in seventh. Leclerc could manage only eighth, also some way off Hamilton’s pace, while Lindblad and an impressive Colapinto secured the final spots available in Q3.

These are the drivers who were eliminated and failed to make it through to Q3: Liam Lawson, Gabriel Bortoleto, Pierre Gasly, Carlos Sainz and Oliver Bearman.

The opening runs saw Lando Norris move into provisional pole with an impressive 1:12.729, with the reigning world champion finishing ahead of fellow Briton Hamilton, Oscar Piastri and Antonelli. Russell continued to struggle, opting to abort his lap and return to the pits instead of completing the run.

On the final runs, Russell initially improved to third place before being pushed down by Antonelli, who snatched provisional pole by just three thousandths of a second over Norris. Norris then crossed the line on his final attempt but remained second, with Oscar Piastri in third.

Russell still had time for one final push and ultimately delivered in the closing moments, snatching pole position away from Antonelli at the very end, while Max Verstappen could manage only sixth. Pole went to Russell with a stunning 1:12.578.