The post-race uproar over VER’s inadequate penalty (for deliberately hitting RUS) has died down; he goes into this race weekend just one penalty point shy of a race ban, and continues to be unapologetic about his actions. The FIA seem to be more concerned that permanent steward Derek Warwick said he felt VER’s penalty was right; Warwick’s been replaced for the Canada GP as punishment for “unauthorised media comments”. [BBC]
There was talk of Bottas filling in for STR who dropped out of the Spain GP after Quali, however BOT still has a 5 grid place penalty from the 2024 Abu Dhabi GP that he’ll have to serve in his next F1 race. STR had “a successful medical procedure” to address the pain in his hands that were the result of a cycling accident two years ago, and he’s been given the all clear to race this weekend.
For Haas’s 200th race they’ve put the names of all their team members on the front wing of both cars
Free Practice
- FP1: VER (1:13.193), ALB, SAI, RUS, HAM
LEC ran wide at Turn 3, hit the barrier, slid across the track into another barrier
HAM spun in the hairpin, as did COL on his first quick lap
ANT locked up into Turn 6 and recovered
ALB got in the way of BOR and ALO
NOR had a few off-track excursions - FP2: RUS (1:12.123), NOR, ANT, ALB, ALO
Ferrari mechanics were still fixing LEC’s car so he couldn’t run in FP2
STR clipped the wall in Turn 7, breaking his front-left suspension; he was told to park the Aston Martin
HAM was fighting his Ferrari, causing his to cut the final chicane; he was alone though – many others cut Turn 13 too
COL spun in Turn 2, same as he did in FP1 - FP3: NOR (1:11.799), LEC, RUS, HAM, VER
PIA clouted the Wall of Champions and punctured his rear-right
HUL spun in the final chicane, skimming his rear wing all the Wall
BEA grazed the Wall once but then he subsequently put the rear out and hit it properly
ALB cut Turn 8
HAS spun in Turn 2
Post-Practice penalties
McLaren was fined €100 for PIA speeding in the pit lane in FP1
RUS received a warning for not following the Race Director’s instructions re: the Turn 14 escape road in FP2
Qualifying
Air temperature 21°C; track 44°C; humidity 32%
Qualifying session 1 (Q1)
SAI 1:20.916
COL 1:15.789
GAS 1:13.787
TSU 1:13.287
RUS 1:12.574
BEA locks up into Turn 1, cuts the corner but that’s ruined his quick lap
HAM does the same as BEA
It’s a mix of soft and medium tyre compounds in the top few places
PIA 1:12.332
ALO on mediums only 0.003sec slower than teammate STR on softs
(LEC P2)
(HAM P2)
VER 1:12.273
ALO 1:12.239 (on mediums)
Radio from PIA reporting a piece of metal off the racing line at Turn 8
The left side of ALB’s engine cover just flew off on the straight approaching the final chicane
Red flag to clear up ALB’s debris
ALB has been noted for continuing on the track instead of stopping ASAP
Green flag; Q1 resumes with 5:30 remaining
NOR 1:11.826 (on new softs)
(PIA P2)
2mins left; bottom 5 are BOR, SAI, ALB, BEA, HUL
BEA has a twitch into the final chicane but collects it up; goes P11
HUL P12
Chequered flag; bottom 5 are LAW, GAS, BOR, SAI, ALB
ALB P6, STR P16
SAI P16
BOR P16
GAS P20
Back of the grid: BOR, SAI, STR, LAW, GAS
Replay of HAD impeding SAI – that ruined SAI’s quick lap, but on the radio HAD says he thought SAI had aborted the lap
Penalties
During Q1 the stewards announced a 10 grid place penalty for TSU (and 2 penalty points) for overtaking under a red flag in FP3
Qualifying session 2
VER 1:11.638 (on mediums)
(NOR P2 on used softs)
LEC 1:11.626
3mins left; bottom 5 are BEA, COL, HAD, OCO, HUL
COL P10
RUS 1:11.570
TSU P9
Chequered flag; bottom 5 are COL, BEA, HAD, OCO, HUL
OCO P14
HAD P9, TSU P11
BEA P13
HUL P13
Middle of the grid: TSU*, COL, HUL, BEA, OCO
*TSU’s penalty will mean he starts P20
Top 10 shootout is between RUS, NOR, LEC, VER, PIA, ALO, HAM, ALB, ANT, HAD
Qualifying session 3
The queue forming at the pit exit looks like they’re all on soft tyres
LEC 1:11.729
NOR P2 but he cut the final chicane
HAM P3
PIA 1:11.273
NOR’s time deleted
ALO P3
VER 1:11.248
HAD P6
RUS P3
ALB P9 on mediums
ANT P4
Order after the first runs: VER, PIA, RUS, ANT, LEC, ALO, HAM, HAD, ALB, NOR
NOR P5
ALO and HAM going out; ALO on mediums, HAM on softs
ALO P4
HAM P4
LEC finds dirty air behind HAD and the Ferrari twitches left and right
PIA 1:11.120
NOR P7
VER 1:11.059
RUS 1:10.899
Chequered flag; order is RUS, VER, PIA, HAM, ALO, ANT, NOR, LEC, ALB, HAD
ANT P4
ALO P6
ALB P9
HAD P9
HAM P5
Front of the grid: RUS, VER, PIA, ANT, HAM, ALO, NOR, LEC, HAD, ALB
Radio from LEC complaining about HAD but there was no impeding, it was just dirty air
Provisional grid: RUS, VER, PIA, ANT, HAM, ALO, NOR, LEC, HAD, ALB, TSU*, COL, HUL, BEA, OCO, BOR, SAI, STR, LAW, GAS
*TSU’s penalty will mean he starts P20
Post-Quali Penalties
HAD was given a 3 grid place penalty for impeding SAI in Q1
OCO received a reprimand for not moving out of the way of faster cars as per the Race Director’s instructions
Race
Pit lane is open; drivers can make their way to the grid
Air temperature 23°C; track 48°C; humidity 26%
LAW has a series of changes on his RB car so he’ll start from the pit lane; same for GAS’s Alpine
Grid: RUS, VER, PIA, ANT, HAM, ALO, NOR, LEC, ALB, COL, HUL, HAD, BEA, OCO, BOR, SAI, STR, TSU; LAW & GAS in pit lane
Alpine engineers are busy replacing brakes on COL’s front-left on the grid
Nice rendition of the Canadian anthem
COL’s brake system has been replaced, but he’ll only have the formation lap to test it before he needs to use it under race conditions
RUS leads everyone away on the formation lap
Front 6 are all starting on medium compound tyres; NOR and LEC on hards; the next few on mediums, but from OCO (P14) down they’re all on hards
RUS and VER form up pointing at each other
01/70: RUS leads through Turn 1
ANT has a look at PIA, and takes P3
COL squeezes ALB; the Williams bounces across the grass – technically he rejoined in the wrong place but I don’t think he had a lot of say
02: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, ALO, NOR, LEC, HUL, COL, HAD, ALB, BEA, OCO, BOR, SAI, TSU, STR, LAW, GAS
DRS enabled
VER has DRS behind RUS
04: VER is going to keep pushing RUS in the hope of damaging the Mercedes’ tyres
05/70: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, ALO, NOR, LEC, HUL, COL
Radio for PIA, “We’re going to Plan B”
06: RUS has opened enough of a gap to deny VER of DRS
08: ALO has DRS behind HAM but he doesn’t seem to be closing on the Ferrari
10/70: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, ALO, NOR, LEC, HUL, COL, HAD, ALB, BEA, OCO, BOR, SAI, TSU, STR, LAW, GAS
Radio from PIA reporting “Front degradation is better than FP2, rear degradation is worse”
11: VER is asked about his tyres; he describes them as “fragile”
12: NOR inside ALO in the hairpin; takes P6
ANT closing on VER
13: VER pits from P2; early stop; hards go on; rejoins P9
OCO inside teammate BEA to take P13
OCO steals P12 from HAD
14: RUS pits from P1; hards; P7
HAD pits too; hards; P20
15/70: ANT pits from P1; hards; P9
COL pits too
NOR has DRS behind HAM
16: HAM pits from P2; hards; P10
ALO pits too; hards; P18
17: PIA pits from P1; hards; P7
NOR now P1; he started on hard tyres so he won’t pit for a while
ANT inside HUL to take P5
SAI locks up into the hairpin, but he takes P11 from BEA
18: PIA past HUL for P6
20/70: NOR, LEC, RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HUL… HUL pits
HAM takes P8 from ALB
21: HAM passes OCO into the final chicane, takes P7
Radio from ALB sounding very frustrated that the team’s not listening to him
22: TSU takes P10 from ALB
23: BOR steals P11 from ALB
ALO now passes ALB
ALB doesn’t want to pit but his medium tyres are done and he’s a sitting duck
24: STR easily past ALB for P13
ALB pits; hards go on; rejoins P20
Radio for LEC, “Plan B”; LEC proposes Plan C
25/70: NOR, LEC, RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, OCO, SAI, TSU
STR pits; more hards go on
26: RUS closing on LEC
RUS has DRS on the back straight; takes P2 from LEC
27: NOR’s pace has dropped off; he’ll make his first stop soon
29: LEC pits from P3; hards; P6
ALO takes P10 from TSU
30/70: NOR pits from P1; mediums; P5
Radio from LEC asking why they boxed him; “We’re on Plan B”; “But I told you the tyres were ok”
31: Radio for ALO telling him to be gentle into a couple of turns; “We’re racing, not testing”
Incidentally, track temp is up to 50°C
33: BEA runs a bit wide, fights the Haas through Turn 8
ALO closing on SAI
34: ALO takes P9 from SAI
Looks like is NOR is pushing the medium tyres quite hard, not saving them for a 1-stop
35/70: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, NOR, LEC, HAM, OCO, ALO, SAI, TSU, BOR, LAW, GAS, HUL, COL, HAD, BEA, STR, ALB
HUL takes P14 from GAS
36: Radio for GAS telling him to swap positions with teammate COL; COL takes P15
38: VER pits from P2; more hards; P6
39: ANT pits from P2; hards; rejoins alongside VER, demoting ANT to P6
40/70: RUS, PIA, NOR, LEC, VER, ANT, HAM, ALO, OCO, SAI
42: RUS is catching up to the train of backmarkers; presumably he’ll pit rather than try to lap them
BEA cut the final chicane
43: RUS pits from P1; hards; P4 – bit of a slow stop, having a second stab at the rear-left wheel nut
45/70: PIA, NOR, LEC, RUS, VER, ANT, HAM, ALO, OCO, SAI, TSU, HUL, BOR, COL, HAD, BEA, STR, GAS, ALB, LAW
STR inside GAS at the hairpin to take P17
GAS fights back; STR defends into the final chicane but he squeezed GAS onto the grass – penalty?
46: PIA pits from P1; hards go on; rejoins P6
HAM pits too; hards; P7
48: NOR pits from P1; hards; P6
Still yet to pit are OCO, SAI, TSU, BOR and GAS
Yellow flag – ALB has pulled off and parked his Williams behind the wall in the hairpin; green flag
49: STR given 10-sec penalty for forcing GAS off the track
50/70: LEC, RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, NOR, HAM, ALO, OCO, SAI
BOR pits
51: PIA and then NOR set fastest lap times
ALO pits; hards; P12
52: Radio from LEC asking why they’re waiting to pit; he wants to be on the mediums
53: STR pits; serves his 10-sec penalty; rejoins P19
PIA has DRS behind ANT
54: LEC pits from P1; mediums; P6
55/70: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, NOR, LEC, HAM, OCO, SAI, HUL, ALO, TSU, COL, BEA, HAD, GAS, BOR, LAW, STR; out: ALB
GAS pits; mediums; P17
56: PIA has a look into Turn 1 but backs off
LAW pits; retires
57: VER slowly closing on RUS
HUL has taken P9 from SAI
TSU pits
58: OCO and SAI pit – finally everyone has made their mandatory stop
59: PIA seems to be suffering more with traffic than ANT
NOR has DRS behind teammate PIA
60/70: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, NOR, LEC, HAM, HUL, ALO, OCO, SAI, COL, BEA, HAD, TSU, BOR, GAS, STR; out: LAW, ALB
61: Radio for NOR asking if he’d want soft tyres if there’s a safety car; “yep”
62: I doubt there’ll be team orders from McLaren so NOR will have to find a safe way to pass PIA
Radio for NOR, “Attack Oscar while he doesn’t have DRS”
63: RUS is opening his lead over VER
64: PIA now just under 1sec behind ANT
65/70: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, NOR, LEC, HAM, ALO, HUL, OCO
66: GAS takes P16 from HAD
NOR inside PIA in the hairpin, but PIA fights back; they’ve both got DRS
NOR and PIA side by side on the back straight
67: PIA leads into the final chicane
NOR looks to go to PIA’s left but NOR tags PIA’s rear; NOR’s lost his front wing and he slides to a stop at the end of the main straight
Safety Car deployed
68[SC]: SC leads everyone through the pit lane to avoid NOR’s car
PIA pits for soft tyres; has to pause as some back markers pass the McLaren pit box
VER whining that RUS “braked erratically” but it’s typical VER trying to run alongside RUS behind the SC
69[SC]: Through the pit lane again; they won’t restart the race
70/70[SC]: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, LEC, HAM, ALO, HUL, OCO, SAI, BEA, TSU, COL, BOR, GAS, HAD, STR; out: NOR, LAW, ALB
SC lights are off, so he’ll go into the pit lane and let RUS cross the finish line
RUS takes the chequered flag – would have been a great photo op 🙂
Provisional result: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, LEC, HAM, ALO, HUL, OCO, SAI; BEA, TSU, COL, BOR, GAS, HAD, STR
DNF: NOR, LAW, ALB
Sounds like a lot of post-race investigations but nothing on the FIA site as yet…
About 4 hours later they’ve finally posted the decision docs
BEA: Failure to follow Race Directors instructions; Warning
OCO: Alleged erratic driving in the pit exit road; No further action
NOR: Causing the collision with PIA; 5 second time penalty
ANT: Overtaking under Safety Car conditions after the chequered flag; Warning
PIA: Overtaking under Safety Car conditions after the chequered flag; Warning
OCO: Overtaking under Safety Car conditions after the chequered flag; Warning
LEC: Overtaking under Safety Car conditions after the chequered flag; Warning
SAI: Overtaking under Safety Car conditions after the chequered flag; Warning
GAS: Overtaking under Safety Car conditions after the chequered flag; Warning
That was a long wait for no significant penalties.
Result: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, LEC, HAM, ALO, HUL, OCO, SAI; BEA, TSU, COL, BOR, GAS, HAD, STR
DNF: NOR, LAW, ALB
[2025 calendar and driver line-up]
