Free Practice 1 | Formula 1 Lenovo Grand Prix Du Canada
Author(s): Lucian Raileanu
Date: 2026-05-23
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INTRO
Formula One™ once again returns to the land of maple syrup, poutine, and mooses. (Meese? Moose? I'm not sure.) This 4.4km circuit located on Île Notre-Dame in Montreal, Quebec, Canada provided last year's McLaren clash and is the place where Lewis Hamilton currently holds the highest record of wins on the grid, with 7 wins claimed at the Canadian GP. We might see some field changes this weekend, as multiple teams are receiving upgrade packages for their cars.
UPGRADES
You can view the full upgrade document from the FIA here. Circuit-specific upgrades have been omitted.
- McLaren: New front wing and bodywork designs for better airflow; an entirely new winglet on top of the halo for better airflow; revised rear wing endplate for better load distribution; revised rear suspension for better airflow and load generation; and revised floor edge devices for better floor conditioning and improved load generation.
- Mercedes: Updated front wing and front wing endplates for more robust airflow structure and better downforce; reduced front corner upper lip camber for better flow to the rear wing; reprofiled floor board elements for better pressure distribution; more slots in the floor front corners for better flow; reprofiled floor body diffuser roof for better flow quality and more load; and reoptimized rear corner winglet positions for better performance of the diffuser.
- Red Bull Racing: better load due to revised floor devices
- Ferrari: No upgrades submitted
- Williams: revised suspension surfaces to improve general flow; and a repositioned exhaust tailpipe to imrpove aerodynamic flow
- VCARB: New main floor geometry for better downforce; reprofiled rear corner devices for better flow, beam wing improvements for better load; and a reprofiled tailpipe for better flow.
- Aston Martin: No upgrades submitted
- Haas: Revised sidepod inlets and engine covers to make the floor design to work more efficiently; revised floor geometry, new floor board, new floor edge splits and a "more aggressive diffuser" for better mass flow and better airflow guidance and stability
- Audi: Updated diffuser for more efficient aero load near the rear; and new cooling louvres for more efficient cooling.
- Alpine: New floor geometry for better aerodynamic performance and efficiency; modified rear wing geometry (reason undisclosed, listed as "as part of rear wing development programme")
- Cadillac: Updated leadng edge lip, modified brake duct internals and exit geometry for better aerodynamic loading and cooling; and revised diffuser winglet lower trims and hanger dtails for better rear areodynamic load
TRACK DATA
Friday's weather showed no rain expected for our FP1 session with temps ranging from just over 7ºC up to 18ºC, with track temps expected to be a max of 39ºC. Winds were decently high, ranging from 11km/h to 32km/h, meaning aero balance is an important aspect this weekend.
The Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve is a very high risk track with close walls and heavy braking zones, and an unforgiving Wall of Champions that's claimed many cars in the past.
PRACTICE REPORT
Friday's practice session began with our whole grid using the hour to gather track information such as pace and tyre behaviour, but quickly became very distruptive with a lot of flags and issues. Franco Colapinto was retired early after he had throttle issues which were later classified as electrical/power unit issues by Alpine.
Flags:
- Red Flag 1 after Liam Lawson stopped on track with a mechanical issue
- Red Flag 2 after Alex Albon hit a groundhog after the Turn 6 chicane and damaged his Williams
- Red Flag 3 after Esteban Ocon spun and hit the barriers, losing the nose of his Haas.
Aside from that, Kimi Antonelli delivered the best lap on Friday with a time of 1:13.402, with Russell close behind, holding a gap of just under 0.15 seconds. Ferrari was strong this session with Hamilton and Leclerc in fourth and fifth respectively, and Verstappen pulling himself to fifth. McLaren lined up in sixth (Norris) and seventh (Piastri).
FINAL CLASSIFICATION
- Kimi Antonelli - 1:13.402
- George Russell - +0.142
- Lewis Hamilton - +0.774
- Charles Leclerc - +0.953
- Max Verstappen - +0.964
- Lando Norris - +1.397
- Oscar Piastri - +1.561
- Arvid Lindblad - +2.050
- Nico Hulkenberg - +2.296
- Fernando Alonso - +2.461
- Gabriel Bortoleto - +2.812
- Isack Hadjar - +2.851
- Esteban Ocon - +3.095
- Alex Albon - +3.240
- Carlos Sainz - +3.258
- Pierre Gasly - +3.407
- Lance Stroll - +3.576
- Liam Lawson - +4.029
- Oliver Bearman - +4.368
- Valtteri Bottas - +4.466
- Sergio Perez - +4.524
- Franco Colapinto - NO TIME