Antonelli tops an action packed FP1 in Canada
- Jason Sharp
- 3 minutes ago
- 2 min read
After having just one Grand Prix throughout the last seven weeks, the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve plays host to the 55th Canadian Grand Prix and its maiden sprint weekend.
The session was topped by the on-form Kimi Antonelli who set a time of 1:13.402, finishing 0.142 seconds ahead of Mercedes teammate George Russell. The Briton who has won the last two Canadian Grand Prix had a late spin at Turn 1.
Lewis Hamilton was P3 at the circuit where he took his maiden victory, but was 0.774 seconds behind Antonelli’s time. Charles Leclerc was P4 in the second Ferrari, Max Verstappen was P5, and the two McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were P6 and P7 respectively.
Arvid Lindblad continued to impress in P8 for Racing Bulls, as did Nico Hulkenberg
in P9 for Audi, and Fernando Alonso who demonstrated some much improved pace for Aston Martin rounding out the top ten.
On a punishing street circuit that evolves quickly, the singular hour of practice was filled with action and disruptions including three red flags. Liam Lawson brought out the first in the opening stages, as he was instructed to stop his Racing Bull at Turn 4 due to a power steering issue.
Later on, Alex Albon crashed heavily after hitting a marmot coming out of Turn 7. The Thai driver was unhurt but his Williams suffered sufficient suspension and bodywork damage. The session was red flagged for the second time and the session was subsequently extended by a further 15 minutes.
The third and final red flag was brought out in the closing stages due to a crash for Esteban Ocon. The Haas driver lost control coming out of Turn 4 after putting the power down on the exit kerb, leaving his car without a front wing.
Looking ahead
Mercedes look incredibly strong with the upgrades they’ve brought this weekend and hold a clear advantage. Russell has taken the last two poles and victories at this circuit, and will want to disrupt Antonelli’s current momentum of winning three Grand Prix in a row.
Williams have a huge job to get Albon’s damaged car ready for Sprint Qualifying, and the whole field will feel compromised by such a disrupted singular practice session. This leads to an unpredictable session ahead, and a test for who can adapt the quickest.
