Mercedes had brought a power unit upgrade to Canada, to make the Silver Arrows even more competitive and dominant than they've already been. A bit surprisingly, qualifying saw the top two teams very evenly matched in terms of performance. The soft rubber was predicted to grain very fast in the race, which made the top two teams opt for the medium compound in Q2. Red Bull, too sent Verstappen out on the yellow-walled medium Pirellis, but due to suffering from traffic and loss of grip, the Dutchman didn't manage to deliver as expected. Verstappen had no choice but to pit for a fresh set of soft Pirellis at the end of the session. Hamilton set the benchmark with five minutes in the clock, with teammate Bottas second. However, Q2 saw a very dramatic end. In the dying moments of the session, Magnussen lost control of his Haas and was thrown into the Wall of Champions! The Dane's lap time would have entitled him to attend Q3, but naturally Magnussen's car was a wreck. The crash brought out the red flags. The biggest-name casualty was definitely Red Bull's Verstappen, who was out of the decisive segment due to the red flags.
The battle for pole was hair-raising, as the gap between Mercedes and the Red Team was utterly tenuous. Hamilton laid his hands on provisional pole by 0.188s to Sebastian. Teammate Charles was third after his first flyer. On the other hand, Mercedes ace Bottas had a moment of scare on his first run, as the Finn spun in Turn 2 in high speed. Miraculously he managed to avoid hitting anything! Everything was down to the final attempt. Hamilton was hungry to improve his lap time, which the Briton also managed to do. However, Sebastian had an ace up to his sleeve. After an absolutely magical last sector the German claimed his first pole of the season by a two-tenth gap to Hamilton! It was a phenomenal effort from Sebastian indeed! Hamilton split the red-suited drivers, as Charles qualified third. The most positive surprise in the qualifying was Renault's Ricciardo, who managed to make it as high as P4 in the standings! Red Bull's Gasly was fifth, and Bottas was left sixth, which was by far the poorest grid slot for the Finn this season.
Magnussen started to the race from the pit lane, and McLaren's Sainz had been handed a 3-place grid penalty for impeding Toro Rosso's Albon in the qualifying. These penalties promoted Verstappen to P9 on the grid. The Dutchman also opted for a different tyre strategy, as Max started to the race on the white-marked hard Pirellis. The top three drivers all got a successful start, and I was so happy to see Sebastian holding on to his lead. Hamilton and Charles were following the race leader closely. Bottas, who had started from modest P6, lost a position to Renault's Hulkenberg. It was eye-catching, how the Finn was struggling with his medium tyres. In no way he was able to match his teammate's pace. On the other hand, Verstappen was making his way through the field on the hard tyres.
The tyre strategy of the two top teams was identical. All four drivers pitted for a fresh set of hard tyres. Verstappen was on an alternative strategy. Due to starting to the race on the hards, the Dutchman had an extremely long first stint. The halfway point of the race had already been passed, before Verstappen pitted for a new set of medium Pirellis. Hamilton's pace on the hard tyres was unfortunately even more convincing than it had been on the medium ones. He seemed faster than Sebastian, and soon the duo was already within DRS distance from each other. It meant one thing only: an intense battle between the arch rivals. Hamilton was pushing flat out to put pressure on Sebastian.
Lap 48 was the decisive and dramatic turning point in the race. Sebastian went wide in Turn 3, ending up on the grass. Naturally he tried to re-join the track as fast as he could, but it was a challenge with grass on his tyres. Sebastian managed just barely to keep his Lina in control. Hamilton had to back off to avoid contact with Sebastian. To me, the incident looked like a racing incident. I mean it's very difficult to predict the grip level, when you re-join the track on dirty tyres. But Sebastian managed to stay in control of his car, and the incident hadn't cause any harm to Hamilton, except a missed overtaking move. However, the stewards took the incident into investigation. Some laps later the cruel verdict was announced; Sebastian was given a 5-second time penalty for re-joining the track unsafely! The penalty turned the otherwise exciting and entertaining race into a farce!
Sebastian was extremely gutted and furious, when he was told about the penalty on the team radio. The only way he was going to win the race, was to be able to build up a 5-second gap to Hamilton. But Sebastian knew, that Lewis wasn't going to let that happen. Sebastian crossed the finish line first, but didn't win the race. Hamilton, who was only two tenths down on the German, took his seventh win in Canada, which equaled Michael Schumacher's legendary record. What an anti-climax indeed! P2 was a massive disappointment for Sebastian, who had had victory in his hands. Charles completed the podium, which was a delight. Bottas was left off podium in P4. The Finn had made an extra pit stop at the end, switching to the softs, and claiming the extra point for the fastest lap time. Verstappen finished 5th for Red Bull and Ricciardo 6th for Renault. Hulkenberg made it a successful day for Renault by finishing 7th.
Sebastian lost his first race win of the season due to a controversial penalty by the stewards. No wonder he was so angry after the race. In the heat of the moment he parked his Lina at the wrong end of the pit lane and decided not to attend the post-race interviews. He even walked to Hamilton's Mercedes and took the number one board away from the car, moving it where his car was supposed to be. I definitely felt Sebastian's pain. He was robbed of the victory! However, he did give an interview on the podium and showed great sportsmanship and respect towards Hamilton, which he can be very proud of.
It's amazing, how Formula 1 can turn your feelings upside down; first you feel over the moon and then totally devastated. I was so so happy on Saturday, when Sebastian secured the pole! And I was so devastated on Sunday after the unexpected loss of victory! This emotional roller-coaster is what makes the sport so great, even though the race results shouldn't be decided by penalties! Forza Ferrari always!
With passion for racing red,
Iina Huhmarniemi
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