Formula One: Canadian grand prix qualifying – live | Formula One

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Q2 begins

Verstappen is the only one on medium tyres. Everyone else has opted for the softs so far.

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Sainz is shell-shocked on the radio. He says he “massively impeded” by Hadjar, who finished the session in 9th, before swearing. That could be a three-grid place penalty for Hadjar.

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Out in Q1

16 Gabriel Bortoleto

17 Carlos Sainz

18 Lance Stroll

19 Liam Lawson

20 Pierre Gasly

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Albon flies up to 6th but Sainz is out of Q1! Wow! He is down on 17th place. Stroll is out in his home grand prix in 18th.

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The Williams pit crew replace Albon’s engine cover and somehow he is out on the track in time for a final lap. He is below the cut line in 18th place with team-mate Sainz only just ahead of him.

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Norris was in 12th minutes ago but with three mins to go he goes quickest on a 1:11.826.

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The debris has been cleared and we are back under way. Alonso still tops the timing board. Norris has switched to a new pair of soft tyres but his teammate Piastri is keeping his same set.

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Albon’s engine cover was just blown away and basically explodes … a lot of questions for Williams as that is surely not meant to happen. So bizarre.

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Updated at 22.20 CEST

Red flag comes out

The session stops at just under 6 minutes to go after Albon’s engine cover flies off and he nearly loses control into the final lap. There is so much debris on the track that needs clearing.

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The board is changing seemingly every second. Alonso is in fourth while Leclerc is now up to second behind Piastri with his opening push lap.

We also have news that Tsunoda has been handed a 10-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri during the red-flag infringement from the third practice.

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Russell was leading the pack but Piastri came in and went top with a time of 1:12.332. Lance Stroll, also on the soft tyres, has gone second.

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A lot of talk about the tyres this week. We were expected to see some of the medium compound tyres today with the C6 red-walled softs not loved. But Norris has gone for the soft one.

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Most drivers are warming up with the heavy hitters – McLaren and Ferrari – are still in the garage.

Kimi Antonelli complains about impeding in the pits on his radio. Looks like it was the Red Bull cars. George Russell is leading the pack with Kimi Antonelli and Alex Albon in P2 and P3.

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Qualifying begins!

Three knockout segments – Q1, Q2 and Q3 – will determine who will sit in pole position.

The fastest 15 in Q1 will progress to Q2 and the slowest five will drop out, filling positions 16-20 on tomorrow’s grid.

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So who could be in play for pole position? McLaren look strong again, at least Lando Norris does. But Oscar Piastri has proved this season he is never down and out.

Max Verstappen has won three races in a row here in Montreal, twice from pole and from P2 last year. He should be cautious given his penalty points but he told reporters he will be driving like usual. Remember he has 11 penalty points and is one away from a race ban.

Ferrari has not been on pole so far in 2025 and the Italian media has made it known that team principal Fred Vasseur is under pressure.

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Max Verstappen is certainly a polarising character in the soap opera that can be Formula One. What does having someone who can be a villain one season and a vulnerable underdog the next do for the sport? Here is Beau Dure’s verdict.

Verstappen the Villain is well and truly back. Russell expressed surprise in Montreal on Thursday that the Dutchman had even offered an apology of sorts but suggested he would be unlikely to change his aggressive approach even if he did accumulate the 12 penalty points that would result in a ban. The question for F1, now and for the foreseeable future: is this a good thing? Does the sport do better when it has someone to root against as well as many drivers to root for?

Other sports benefit from having foils for the fan favorites. If a supporter’s favorite team loses, there’s always a chance the New York Yankees or Manchester United might lose as well, and there’s comfort in schadenfreude. Consider Nascar, where fans either loved or hated Dale Earnhardt’s “Intimidator” style and often distrusted Jeff Gordon because he was a smooth-talking Californian, not a rough-edged man with a southern state drawl.

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George Russell has been fined €200 for speeding in the pit lane twice during the third practice session. The Mercedes driver went 0.1km/h over the 80km/h speed limit and 0.2km/h over on a separate occasion resulting in two €100 fines.

Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda and Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto possible red flag infringements are being investigated.

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Top 10 final practice standings

1. Lando Norris (McLaren) 1:11.799

2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.078

3. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.151

4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.251

5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.273

6. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +0.448

7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.549

8. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.720

9. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.720

10. Alex Albon (Williams) +0.774

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At the final practice in Montreal, Lando Norris came out on top after what he called’s McLaren’s Friday the “worst” of the season.

His late-session time of 1:11.799 on soft tyres was quickest, although McLaren’s rivals remained close behind.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – returning to the track after his big crash in yesterday’s first practice session – finished within a tenth of the lead McLaren. Mercedes’ George Russell, Lewis Hamilton in his Ferrari, and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen were all in close contention by the end.

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was one of three drivers to hit the Wall of Champions, getting an instant puncture after smacking it with the right-rear wheel of his car. The debris on the track brought out the red flag and the F1 leader may have damaged the suspension on his McLaren. Nico Hulkenberg and Oliver Bearman later hit the wall hard too.

It’s been a good day so far for McLaren’s Lando Norris. Photograph: Christinne Muschi/APShare

Updated at 22.05 CEST

There is tension in the Ferrari camp as Fred Vasseur, whose position as team principal is under scrutiny, says criticism of his team is “clearly hurting” their chances of fighting for the world championship.

I knew when I took the position as team principal I would be exposed, but for the people in the team who are working very hard to read that they will be replaced and they are useless, it is very harsh and it should be considered that these people have family, they have wives, they have kids and it is disrespectful. And I don’t want to speak about it any more.

Ferrari are already 197 points behind McLaren in the constructors’ standings.

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FIA steward Warwick suspended for media comments

The former grand prix driver Derek Warwick has been suspended from his role as a steward at this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix, the FIA unhappy with “recent unauthorised media comments”.

He is being replaced by the Brazilian Enrique Bernoldi, who would be “officiating from the remote operations centre in Geneva for the remainder of the event”.

The FIA says: “After discussion, Derek acknowledges that his comments were ill-advised in his role as an FIA steward and has apologised. Derek will resume his duties as a steward in the forthcoming Austrian Grand Prix.”

Warwick is being punished for expressing a negative opinion about Max Verstappen at the Spanish Grand Prix after the Dutchman apparently deliberately collided with Mercedes’ George Russell, saying the decision was “right” to hit the Red Bull driver with a penalty.

On a gambling website, Warwick doubled down by saying: “Should he have done what he did, in Turn Five with George Russell? Absolutely not. Did he get a penalty for that? Yes. It seems to me that, although he dove in, he then did turn away from George, but momentum pushed him against George. It is absolutely wrong and the FIA was right to give him a penalty.”

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Preamble

Bonjour and welcome to qualifiers of the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal, eh. The overhanging trees at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve give the track with a lot of slow-speed corners a great feel. The drivers will be tested with unforgiving run-off areas and the series of tight, alternating turns at the end.

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris – both of McLaren – lead the driver standings with the defending champion Max Verstappen in third. The Dutchman is under pressure this weekend as he is just one penalty point from a race ban after colliding with George Russell during the Spanish Grand Prix.

Join me for the buildup and news before we get to the 9pm BST / 4pm EST qualifiers. And, as always, feel free to send your predictions, questions and concerns via email.

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