Following FP1 in Montreal, the weekend moved on to sprint qualifying at the Canadian Grand Prix. Andrea Kimi Antonelli ended the session on top for Mercedes, ahead of George Russell, while Lewis Hamilton completed a strong‑looking top three for the team.
There was plenty of drama throughout the only practice session of the weekend, with Franco Colapinto, Liam Lawson, Alex Albon and Esteban Ocon all bringing out stoppages at different stages. FP1 was extended by 15 minutes to make up for the lost running, but with Mercedes appearing especially competitive and McLaren and Ferrari both in the mix, the sprint qualifying battle promised some intriguing battles.
SQ1: Red Flag Drama Continues
Before sprint qualifying had even started, both P22 and P21 were already decided: due to his crash, Alex Albon was unable to take part in the session. The same applied to Liam Lawson, who could not participate after suffering a hydraulic leak during FP1.
With less than two minutes remaining in SQ1, Fernando Alonso brought out the red flag. After making a mistake and locking up his front-tires, he went straight into the wall at Turn 3. Although he was uninjured, the damage to his car forced him to retire from the session.
While some of the top drivers decided not to head back out, the battle for the top 16 places intensified. The clock showed 1:46 remaining when the red flag turned green again, triggering a frantic rush for one final flying lap. However, only three drivers managed to cross the line in time to start another lap. Nevertheless, none of them were able to improve on their earlier times set before the red flag. Lewis Hamilton remained at the top of the standings.
Eliminated in SQ1:
17) Sergio Perez
18) Lance Stroll
19) Pierre Gasly
20) Valtteri Bottas
– ) Liam Lawson
– ) Alex Albon
SQ2: Mercedes and Ferrari Set the Pace
After topping the timesheets in SQ1, Lewis Hamilton was also the first driver to head out on track in SQ2. Mercedes joined the fight for P1, with George Russell setting a 1:13.026 to move ahead of Hamilton. Championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli followed closely behind, less than a tenth off Russell’s time. With Charles Leclerc also right in the mix, Mercedes and Scuderia Ferrari dominated the second phase of sprint qualifying.
Eliminated in SQ2:
11) Nico Hülkenberg
12) Gabriel Bortoleto
13) Franco Colapinto
14) Esteban Ocon
15) Ollie Bearman
16) Fernando Alonso
SQ3: Mercedes Locks Out the Front Row
Charles Leclerc and George Russell both began their final runs of the session with slight slides through Turns 1 and 2, underlining their determination to secure pole position.
With more than three minutes still left on the clock, Russell became the first and only driver to break into the 1:12s, setting a 1:12.965. As the last driver to complete his lap, Andrea Kimi Antonelli claimed P2, once again finishing less than a tenth behind Russell.
The result secured a front row lockout for Mercedes, while Lando Norris (+0.315) and Oscar Piastri (+0.334) completed an all McLaren second row in P3 and P4.
Despite finishing in the top two in both SQ1 and SQ2, Lewis Hamilton had to settle for P5, just behind Piastri at +0.361.
The rest of the top 10 are as follows:
6) Charles Leclerc (+0.624s)
7) Max Verstappen (+0.749s)
8) Hadjar (+1.451s)
9) Arvid Lindbladt (+1.553s)
10) Carlos Sainz (+1.605s)