Antonelli leads Italy to the podium: McLaren disappoints, Verstappen only rival of winner Russell
Already started with the sun, then conducted mostly calmly, it was a Canadian Grand Prix in which Norris showed the worst of himself, that is, that he did not deserve to drive such a high-performance car, given that he blew up a second place to "play" for just two points with his teammate. And so on a Sunday in which it was already clear that the McLarens would not get on the podium, the two hurt themselves even more. It is the first time in 2025 and it is news that all in all "does good" for the championship. A useless "bang" and a world-class embarrassment no longer define the balance of the Woking team.
Russell wins unchallenged and Antonelli doesn't let anyone pass him, except a certain four-time world champion who doesn't give up even a metre and gets the strategy and driving right: never a mistake, never a slip-up, because he still believes he can catch up with the "papayas" in the general classification.
The action started right from the first corner, with Russell getting a perfect start while Verstappen stayed in his slipstream. Antonelli quickly passed Piastri, while Hamilton, Alonso, Norris and Leclerc maintained their starting positions.
Russell, however, did not seem to have enough margin to distance Verstappen, who was very aggressive and pressing him closely. Meanwhile, a little further back, Antonelli managed to contain Piastri and gradually increase his advantage.
After an early pit stop by Verstappen a fifth of the way into the long stage, both Russell and Piastri responded quickly in the following laps, preventing him from taking a significant advantage from his undercut. Meanwhile, Norris and Leclerc opted for a later strategy, trying to manage the hard tyres and hold their positions for as long as possible. However, when Leclerc was passed by Russell on lap 26, he began to consider a strategic alternative, despite both being on the same tyres, in favour of Mercedes.
When Leclerc gets fresher tyres, they are still mediums, it becomes difficult to think that over 70 laps he could have made the difference, especially with a one-stop strategy. It doesn't seem plausible to believe it, neither with the mediums, nor with the hards with which he started the race. Furthermore, according to the regulation that requires the use of two different compounds for each race, such an option would not have been conceivable for any of the cars.
At mid-race, Verstappen was the first of the 20 drivers to come in for the second pit stop, repeating the initial strategy. This time too, the team had verified that the gap with Kimi Antonelli had reduced to a dangerous level. By lap 40, both had therefore already completed the second stop, maintaining their respective positions: an operation that succeeded by a whisker, with the aim of securing the podium.
In the last stint nothing happens that could shuffle the cards. The tracks of a Canadian test that, whenever it is run in the absence of precipitation, is proven to be a bit monotonous, brought the expected results except for the aforementioned unforeseen event of Norris. On one side the Mercedes quite uncatchable with an angry and stubborn Verstappen in the middle. On their heels the two McLarens, with Piastri in front who needed to always stay ahead of his teammate to protect and increase the ten point margin in the drivers' championship.
The two Ferraris follow, however with Leclerc sixth and Hamilton seventh until the orange papatrac that allows both to advance one position (therefore sixth on the checkered flag): and yet the seven-time champion had qualified fifth with over three tenths of a margin in the decisive Q3. Another weekend that will be remembered as negative, but on the other hand there will probably be no significant surprises until the summer break. In fact, the day is also darkened by the consideration of the loss of second place in the constructors' championship to Mercedes: now chasing the three-pointed star with a sixteen-point deficit. And for some, probably, the regret of not having trusted Antonelli at the right time.
The end of the race, as explained, was particularly nervous, not to say "stupid" as the Englishman from McLaren told himself. With five laps to go, the two started punching each other, but they are certainly not called Prost and Senna. And there were only two points up for grabs. After a bit of back and forth and failed overtaking attempts, Norris on lap 67, in full acceleration, touches the left rear of Piastri and also ends up against the wall. Significant damage and a shower of carbon on the straight follows. Inevitably, the safety car comes in, effectively putting an end to Sunday with a single file finish, behind the usual Aston Martin that brought the smartest drivers to the catwalk. A rather unforgivable mistake that, according to the driver himself on the radio, he blames entirely on himself. So from a ten point disadvantage, the gap has increased in favor of Piastri because Norris, with a retirement, does not take even one.
Piastri was therefore lucky but he did not celebrate completely last night, because seeing Antonelli overtake him at the start did not help him in defending his lead, considering Verstappen's recent progress.
Thank goodness Alonso finished seventh: a small consolation for the team manager with the maple leaf passport who continues to race a son who is proving to be one of the worst drivers of recent decades.
On the other hand, Jacques Villeneuve had not managed to win at home either (but he was second in 1996), and his father Gilles had only managed it once, in 1978.
Lance Stroll received a 10-second penalty in the Canadian Grand Prix after forcing Pierre Gasly off the circuit. Gasly requested the penalty, which was handed down to Stroll. Stroll had been at the back of the field for the entire race.
Paddock buzz suggests Steve Nielsen is set to return to Briatore's team, this time as Alpine's team manager. Despite a solid sixth-place finish among the teams in 2024, Oliver Oakes was fired with immediate effect following a disastrous performance in Miami.
Finally, looking at the less obvious aspects of last weekend, we see that Haas celebrated the remarkable 200 Grand Prix after its debut in 2016 but still remains without a podium: with Bearman and Ocon in fourteenth and fifteenth position, not much could have been hoped for yesterday either. However, looking at the constructors' standings, it is not bad at all to be able to fight for sixth place with Racing Bulls Honda.
As many feared, the Imola Grand Prix fortuitously reintroduced “thanks” to the cancellations of the Covid-19 pandemic five years ago, following the provisional publication of next year's commitments will be replaced by the Madrid GP, with reservations, given that the circuit is still awaiting homologation. Stefano Domenicali, renewed by Liberty Media at the top of Formula 1 until 2029, reassured fans that the absence of Imola does not mean the end of his relationship with the premier class. However, he underlined the challenges associated with hosting multiple races in a single country and the need for a different strategic approach: a fact that however does not apply in the United States of America where the beautiful Austin track has been joined by two less “traditional” circuits, in Las Vegas and Miami. The latter in particular, with a record-length contract already extended until 2041 to allow it to amortize the significant investments. Domenicali stressed the importance of rotating historic circuits starting from 2027 and saw the exclusion of Imola as an opportunity to explore new possibilities, with an implicit reference at least to the monumental Spa-Francorchamps track.
With Amato Ferrari, after two successful years with the official team, the third consecutive seal arrived for the prancing horse in the hypercar class with a crew captained by none other than Robert Kubica. The forty-year-old Polish driver, much loved also in Italy thanks to his debut with Prema, which allowed him to learn the language at a very young age, is sadly known for having had a rally accident at a time in his career when he had started to shine in Formula 1. Despite a debilitating injury to his arm, he was able to demonstrate that he could briefly return to racing in the top series and win in various international categories, from rallies to endurance races, excelling in particular in the European Le Mans Series 2021 and 2024, in the 2023 endurance world championship up to the most beautiful seal, the legendary victory at Le Mans a few hours earlier at the wheel of the Ferrari 499P number 83 together with the British Philip Hanson and the surprising Chinese Ye Yifei (already champion in small formulas and continental LMS). On the podium of the ninety-third edition, in third place, with the only real rival of the long distance race in between (the Porsche #6), also the official Ferrari #51 with Antonio Giovinazzi, Alessandro Pierguidi and James Calado, the same trio that in 2023 brought the Maranello team back to success in this legendary competition.
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