It’s hard to find someone in the Formula One paddock who isn’t excited to return to Canada and on the Gilles Villeneuve epic track in Montreal in two years without the race on the calendar. So how did the drivers do in the first two workouts over the weekend? Here are five things we learned from Friday’s run …
1. Red Bull have an advantage in the tense match
Max Verstappen did not have the calmest time on Friday this year, but apart from some cutting problems – when the battery ran out at the end of the straight – it was a very impressive day for the reigning world champion.
He was the fastest of all in FP2 and there seemed to be a lot more in the tank. When we understood the numbers, there was nothing to choose between Red Bull and Ferrari in the qualifiers, which in itself is an improvement.
FP2: Verstappen overtakes Leclerc by 0.081 seconds to improve Friday’s practice in Montreal
As for the pace of the race, they had an advantage of 0.12 seconds over the red cars, their advantage – as in recent races – came to the right thanks to their advantage in speed in a straight line.
It wasn’t that easy for Sergio Perez, the Mexican on his hind leg, after having trouble adjusting to his low fuel, and that means he’ll be chasing his performance over the weekend. But based on what Verstappen is showing, Red Bull are the ones to win this weekend.
READ MORE: Perez admits to being “on his hind legs” in Montreal after finishing FP2 in 11th place, as Verstappen leads both Friday’s sessions
2. Ferrari are in battle, but Leclerc is facing a tough battle
Carlos Sainz believes Ferrari are catching up with Max Verstappen after Friday’s practice – and although he feels they are missing both in one lap and at a competitive pace, he believes the progress the team tends to make from Friday to Saturday , should attract them in the battle for the top positions.
They have the advantage in slow and medium turns (there are no fast ones here), but they lose about a few tenths of a second in the straight from their rivals in the championship.
But whatever they manage to achieve overnight, Leclerc has a long afternoon ahead of him on Sunday after his team changed their control electronics, triggering a 10-point penalty on the net. Any additional changes to engine components this weekend will mean it will start even further back.
This is a track where overtaking has been possible in the past – and while he admits that overtaking was “a little harder than I expected today”, he believes the pace is there to return to where must be in the order of pecking.
READ MORE: “That was the best solution,” Leclerc said as Ferrari confirmed a penalty in Montreal for Monegasque.
3. Mercedes in a world of pain
Mercedes tried several modifications during Friday’s training session in an attempt to raise the W13 to a better place, but as in Monaco and Baku, driving continues to upset the car at both low and high speeds.
Lewis Hamilton said the day was a “disaster” and that there was a feeling that the car was “getting worse”. His teammate George Russell had a better time and believes that he and Hamilton will be able to find a “happy environment” for one night, after going in completely different directions with the setting.
Their qualifying pace looks better than Baku’s, but they are still three-quarters of a second faster – and slower than those like Alpine and McLaren. The pace of the race is better, as they are fourth overall, but there is still a half-second deficit in the lap to the leaders in the Red Bull Championship.
This may be another difficult weekend for Mercedes, but they have shown in recent races that although they lack the pace to compete for the final prize, they can save strong points.
READ MORE: “It was a disaster” – Hamilton says Mercedes W13 is “getting worse” after an experimental Friday in Montreal
4. Alpine continues the exciting Friday form
Alpine have a habit of presenting strong performances on Friday, but are struggling to carry that over the weekend. Whether this will change this weekend remains unclear, but data on both low fuel and racing are more promising than usual.
Fernando Alonso was third fastest in FP1 and fifth fastest in FP2. appreciated the car on high fuel.
They are third in the qualifying simulations, 0.66 seconds faster and closer when it comes to racing – reversing the recent trend – 0.42 seconds slower, one tenth faster than Mercedes. The best of the rest should be the minimum goal if they are building a very good working day in Montreal.
HIGHLIGHTS: Watch the action from the second training session in Montreal, while Verstappen leads Ferrari
5. McLaren in the mix for more points
Daniel Ricciardo was the happier of the two McLaren drivers on Friday – and we’ve rarely been able to say that this year. The Australian, who transferred momentum from Baku to Canada, was able to equal his teammate Lando Norris, who missed a lot of time on the track in FP1.
He managed to quickly get into the groove and build a rhythm during the day. Norris recovered in the afternoon – they both looked reasonable at the pace of one lap, the orange cars fourth in line.
“There’s more in the bag” – Ricciardo feels positive after “hard” Friday in Canada
There’s a little more work to be done on long runs, Norris says, feeling back on track in the area because he hasn’t run as much as he’d like on high fuel. But McLaren is still fifth in the long run, tenth by Alpine in third place on the track where overtaking is possible.
With the rain starting during qualifying tomorrow and the warmer conditions expected to return on Sunday, there is certainly much more to play for.
WATCH: Ride on board with Max Verstappen as he sets the fastest lap on Friday in Montreal
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