Dave Robson: Williams were able to compete with other teams in Canada

Williams' senior race engineer Dave Robson has insisted the team were able to control its tyre temperatures over the weekend in Canada, allowing the former world champions to compete with the midfield in Montreal.

George Russell and Robert Kubica could only qualify on the back-row once again, but the pair performed well and were allowed to compete with the rest of the grid at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve.

Russell once again finished above his more experienced team-mate, for the seventh time in a row. The Formula 2 champion finished in P16 in Canada, competed - and finished above - Kevin Magnussen and Alexander Albon.

Kubica had to settle for P18 in Montreal, but it was a much more competitive showing from the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix winner.

"The hottest day of the weekend threw up some new challenges and led to many drivers managing their car, be it for the brake temperatures, tyre degradation, or engine temperatures," Robson explained.

"Fortunately for us, we had most things under good control and were able to race cars around us. For George, this meant that he was able to race Magnussen and, until his retirement, Albon. For Robert, who struggled more this weekend, we opted to make a second stop and use our full complement of Prime tyres.

"We made some small improvements to the car this weekend, and we managed a difficult race well. The team continue to do a very good job with the pit-stops and both drivers again completed well-constructed races and brought both cars home with no damage."