Verstappen proud of Red Bull team: 'Stayed calm'

Max Verstappen took pole position convincingly during qualifying in Canada. The driver was over six tenths faster than Fernando Alonso who finished second. For the Dutchman, there was therefore much to be satisfied with.

Verstappen stated afterwards that he is happy to be back in Canada. "Of course, I'm super happy that I was able to take pole position here, and also to be back here in Montreal," he stated, pointing to the two years that the race weekend could not take place. "It's been a while. It's good to see all the fans."

As Ferrari chose to give Charles Leclerc an entirely new engine, the driver will start from last place on Sunday. Sergio Perez suffered a crash, which also prevented him from getting a good starting position. It makes Verstappen's challenge seemingly easier, although he himself looks at it differently.

"I still don't expect it to be an easy race, but I think today in the difficult conditions we stayed calm and didn't make any mistakes. We had the right decisions in Q2 and Q3," said Verstappen, who has Alonso and Carlos Sainz behind him at the start.