Canada - Sprint Qualifying

Following Kimi Antonelli's Miami win, Formula One stayed within North America. What changed was the country: instead of taking place in the United States, the sport appeared in Canada, on the circuit named after the legendary Gilles Villeneuve. Once again, the weekend included a sprint, so its first big event began on Friday afternoon. 

Not all drivers were seen on track during SQ1. Neither Alex Albon nor Liam Lawson set any times, taking up two out of the six elimination-granting positions. On the other side of the spectrum, not for the first time this season, Antonelli set the quickest early time of all, but could not improve on his effort, as with a little less than two minutes left on the clock, Fernando Alonso's lock-up put his Aston Martin in the wall, bringing out a red flag that altered the course of the session. Interestingly, he had set a time good enough to make it through to SQ2. In the end, Sergio Perez, Lance Stroll, Pierre Gasly, and Valtteri Bottas ended their day alongside Albon and Lawson. 

The second session of the day also began with Mercedes putting their best foot forward. The Ferraris and McLarens also sat comfortably towards the top of the table, but the Red Bulls were dangerously close to the edge. They made it through in the end, unlike Nico Hulkenberg, Gabriel Bortoleto, Franco Colapinto, Esteban Ocon, Oliver Bearmna, and, of course, Alonso. 

George Russell continued his team's good streak, setting the best time early in SQ3 and creating a benchmark for the other drivers to strive towards. While they tried to match his effort, he only improved it, securing the sprint pole and leaving the rest of the field far behind. With Antonelli close behind, the fans were, once again, treated to a Mercedes front row lockup. 

Order of the grid:

1. George Russell

2. Kimi Antonelli

3. Lando Norris

4. Oscar Piastri

5. Lewis Hamilton

6. Charles Leclerc

7. Max Verstappen

8. Isack Hadjar

9. Arvid Lindblad

10. Carlos Sainz

11. Nico Hulkenberg

12. Gabriel Bortoleto

13. Franco Colapinto

14. Esteban Ocon

15. Oliver Bearman

16. Fernando Alonso

17. Sergio Prez

18. Lance Stroll

19. Pierre Gasly

20. Valteri Bottas

21. Alex Albon

22. Liam Lawson