Category: Motor Racing

Lewis Hamilton scored his first win in red thanks to a strategy masterclass by Ferrari to give the seven-time world champion his maiden victory for the Scuderia at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.

Kimi Antonelli was set to finish in second position behind Hamilton before an engine issue occurred with three laps remaining, handing the runner-up place to teammate George Russell.

Antonelli’s retirement meant Lando Norris completed the podium, one which saw Hamilton finally achieve victory on his 31st Ferrari start.

The seven-time world champion arrived in Barcelona after two consecutive P2 finishes to Antonelli and said after Monaco last weekend that his 106th Formula 1 career victory “couldn’t be closer”.

But he was made to work for it, as a “big reset” led to Russell beating his former teammate to pole after slipping 68 points behind Antonelli who rounded out the top three starting positions.

Different strategies were shown during the race, as Mercedes chose the favourable medium compound compared to Hamilton on softs, which had previously shown tyre deg in the heat.

So it did not take long for that to show in the hot conditions, as Russell held firm at race start before moving three seconds clear of Hamilton during the opening ten laps.

The driver who made the most places was Hamilton’s teammate Charles Leclerc who jumped from tenth to sixth on mediums, before starting to apply pressure on Max Verstappen with softs.

Hamilton and Verstappen therefore respectively pitted for hard and medium tyres quite quickly, coming in on lap 12 with Russell following on the next lap, though against his wish.

The Mercedes driver was worried he would been “exposed” to Antonelli who had extended his first stint, but race engineer Marcus Dudley confirmed there was “nothing to worry about”.

That’s because Antonelli only stayed out for two extra laps before fitting the hard compound, where he rejoined in third to keep the order as it was during an expected two-stop race.

But Ferrari made a masterstroke with Hamilton’s strategy by pitting him for mediums on lap 28, having initially struggled to close on Russell across a very stationary second stint.

The seven-time world champion rejoined in seventh, quickly taking sixth from Oscar Piastri at Turn 4, before fifth on lap 30 as Verstappen suffered a slow 4.5 seconds pitstop for hard tyre.

Yet going for a three-stopper turned into a masterclass from Ferrari, as it allowed a rapid Antonelli to close to within half a second of Russell after being caught out by traffic.

The championship leader therefore launched an attack, each time Russell holding firm, but it caused the Silver Arrows drivers to take time off each other while Leclerc easily let Hamilton by into fourth on lap 32.

“Am I catching them?” was Hamilton’s response, sensing his best chance yet of a maiden Ferrari win as he continuously reduced the gap on fresh mediums – helped by Norris pitting from third.

Third soon became the race lead as Mercedes pitted both drivers for hards come lap 38, leaving Russell and Antonelli respectively 16 seconds and 17 seconds behind the Ferrari driver before a lap 41 VSC.

That happened as Fernando Alonso had to stop at Turn 9, giving Hamilton a timely opportunity to pit for hards and rejoin two-seconds ahead of Russell just as the VSC ended.

“Great job guys” Hamilton reacted, before gradually building his advantage across a controlled final stage as Mercedes had no answer to the pace of the Ferrari.

So the Scuderia eventually ended the Silver Arrows’ perfect start to 2026, taking victory at round seven and its first since Carlos Sainz’s win at the Mexico Grand Prix in October 2024.

As for Hamilton, this was his first victory since July of that same 2024 season in Belgium, crossing the finishing line 19.5 seconds ahead of Russell who had briefly dropped to third after a late overtake from Antonelli down the pit straight.

But only two laps later, on lap 63, trouble hit Antonelli as it did Leclerc who had lost the power steering in the other Ferrari to retire from sixth.

So it left an all-British podium of Hamilton, Russell and Norris, ahead of fourth-placed Verstappen, fifth-placed Piastri and Isack Hadjar in sixth for Red Bull.

Alpine duo Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto were respectively seventh and eighth, with Racing Bulls pair Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad completing the top ten.

So congratulations to Lewis Hamilton in winning his first Grand Prix as Ferrari driver. Back in 1996, Michael Schumacher achieved his first for the Scuderia at this track. Fast forward 30 years, the seven-time champion is victorious. It will be fascinating if Ferrari can continue this challenge to Mercedes over the course of the season. If so, Lewis has an opportunity to go at his eighth drivers’ title.

Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, race results:
1 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:32:28.105
2 George Russell Mercedes +19.561s
3 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes +23.719s
4 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford +40.497s
5 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes +58.661s
6 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford +1 lap
7 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes +1 lap
8 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes +1 lap
9 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford +1 lap
10 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford +1 lap
11 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +2 laps
12 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes +2 laps
13 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari +2 laps
14 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari +3 laps
Charles Leclerc Ferrari DNF
Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes DNF
Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari DNF
Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes DNF
Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda DNF
Nico Hulkenberg Audi DNF
Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari DNF
Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda DNF

George Russell scored an important pole position for the Barclona-Catalunya Grand Prix with a front row starting position over his championship contenders Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Antonelli.

Russell set a time of one minute, 14.679 seconds for his first pole since the season opener at Melbourne, 0.064 seconds quicker than second-placed Lewis Hamilton with Antonelli in third and three tenths behind his Mercedes teammate.

The Mercedes driver’s pole this weekend is no surprise after topping two of the three practice sessions, while also going fastest in Q2 after finishing second in the opening qualifying segment.

In Q3, meanwhile, drivers had to overcome an early red flag as Charles Leclerc crashed at the Turn 4 exit after drifting onto the dirty line which suddenly caused him to lose the back end of his Ferrari.

By that point only two laps were completed, Oscar Piastri’s one minute, 15.176 seconds to Max Verstappen’s one minute, 15.328 seconds, both of which were subsequently beaten to provisional pole by Russell.

Russell set a time of one minute, 15.145 seconds, 0.031 seconds quicker than Piastri, while teammate Antonelli could only achieve a provisional fourth after going 0.269 seconds slower.

Antonelli improved with a time of one minute, 14.998 seconds on his second run though, initially jumping ahead of his teammate, before Russell took pole back moments later by 0.319 seconds.

The championship leader dropped again after Hamilton’s late time, with one minute, 14.743 seconds, meaning he will share the second row with Lando Norris who set a time of one minute, 15.001 seconds at the end for McLaren.

Verstappen ultimately qualified fifth, improving to a one minute, 15.021 seconds late on, with his Red Bull teammate Isack Hadjar 0.056 seconds behind in sixth to complete the third row.

It was a scrappy end for Piastri who slipped down to seventh, having only improved to one minute, 15.090 seconds, and his McLaren will be joined on the fourth row by in-form Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson.

Lawson set a time of one minute, 16.542 seconds, still some way off the top four teams, but more important a tenth ahead of ninth-placed Nico Hulkenberg for Audi with P10 going to Leclerc.

It could have been worse for McLaren though as both of its cars were at risk at the end of Q2 with Norris eighth and Piastri only tenth, but the pair improved to survive the elimination.

So P11 went to Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad, 0.161 seconds ahead of Gabriel Bortoleto for Audi and Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.

It means Colapinto has now outqualified teammate Pierre Gasly in five of the last six sessions – including sprints – as P14, a day after his Monaco podium was reinstated.

Oliver Bearman ultimately took P15 for Haas with P16 going to Carlos Sainz in a Q2 session topped by Russell, who was second to former Mercedes teammate Hamilton in Q1.

Q1 saw Esteban Ocon qualify P17 for the third consecutive race after being pushed into the elimination zone late on by Sainz, whose Williams teammate Alex Albon took P18.

It is a Cadillac tenth row with Sergio Perez in P19, again outqualifying Valtteri Bottas in P20, while Aston Martin was a second behind the new outfit at the back.

For the first time in 2026, Lance Stroll qualified ahead of Fernando Alonso by taking P21, while last place P22 went to the world champion and the 2013 race winner.

Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, qualifying results:
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:14.679
2 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:14.743
3 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:14.998
4 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes 1:15.001
5 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford 1:15.021
6 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford 1:15.077
7 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes 1:15.090
8 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford 1:16.542
9 Nico Hulkenberg Audi 1:16.657
10 Charles Leclerc Ferrari No time
11 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford 1:15.840
12 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:16.001
13 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes 1:16.191
14 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes 1:16.261
15 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari 1:16.389
16 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes 1:17.827
17 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari 1:17.073
18 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes 1:17.424
19 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari 1:17.545
20 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari 1:17.757
21 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda 1:18.758
22 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda 1:18.815

Kimi Antonelli scored his fifth consecutive victory in Formula 1 in a dramatic race in Monaco in which many drivers received a penalty for speeding in the pits and cars crashing out due to the track surface breaking up.

The Mercedes driver was in full control from the start, making a clean getaway while Max Verstappen – who qualified second on the grid – was forced to retire with a technical issue.

At lights out in Monaco, the championship leader calmly maintained first place as Verstappen faced a depressing issue at the start that saw him slide down the order before he became the first to retire.

While others struggled with various mechanical problems that forced them out of the action, including Valtteri Bottas and McLaren driver Lando Norris, Antonelli consistently opened up his advantage over the Ferrari duo of Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.

However, his win was threatened with around 20 laps remaining when Lance Stroll crashed at the final corner of the Circuit de Monaco, bringing out a safety car that allowed many to take a second pit stop without losing too much time.

It may have threaten Antonelli’s race, but it offered a brilliant opportunity for those who had been handed time penalties for speeding in the pit lane to serve them during the race.

The restart was short-lived as home favourite Leclerc experienced an identical crash to Stroll’s and the race was halted to inspect track break-up at Turn 19. His retirement helped promote Hadjar to his first Red Bull podium – Pierre Gasly finished ahead on the track but dropped down the order thanks to two five-second penalties – with Oscar Piastri and Liam Lawson taking fourth and fifth place.

Arvid Lindblad finished in P6 scoring some great result for Racing Bulls. Gasly is classified in seventh, Alex Albon in eighth and Esteban Ocon in ninth. Cadillac achieved their first points with Sergio Perez, although Checo is still under investigation for a false start.

Initially, the race was a processional affair until the final part of the Monaco Grand Prix when Stroll hit the wall and prompted the emergence of the safety car on lap 60.

This led to a series of action in the pitlane ahead of the lap 66 restart, but Leclerc’s crash at the same corner prompted the safety car’s return followed by the red flag.

The issue was a recently resurfaced layer of track on the entry to the final corner, which had broken up and left a sprinkling of asphalt on the racing line.

Neither driver agreed that this was the cause of their crashes, however with Stroll saying that an engine braking issue was behind his crash, with Leclerc blaming the brakes.

After the track was cleaned up and inspected by race officials, the Monaco Grand Prix was resumed after a 40-minute pause, with the cars instructed to perform a standing start where Antonelli led Lewis Hamilton on the front row.

Despite Ferrari’s getaway off the line, Antonelli kept calm in the face of chaos and covered off Hamilton into the first corner.

The championship leader had led every lap up until that point. There were hints of an early battle between him and fellow front-row driver Max Verstappen but was dashed immediately, when the Red Bull struggling off the grid and prompted the field behind to take evasive action.

This put the Ferraris, Hamilton from Leclerc, behind Antonelli, but the polesitter fled the scene immediately and gathered more than the required one-second advantage to escape from a potential challenge from the seven-time world champion.

Antonelli’s lead was up to five seconds by the end of lap 10. The gap between he and Hamilton closed up over the next ten laps, briefly reducing to below three seconds as Antonelli had to tackle with the early stoppers queuing up to be lapped.

Yet, once the traffic had been cleared and when Antonelli had managed his brake temperatures, the gap over Hamilton quickly began to swell by over a second per lap.

The Mercedes driver looked in control running P1 in the race, continuing to run at a pace that was not viable for Ferrari to match.

After pitting at half distance, a few laps after both Ferraris had conducted their stops, Antonelli returned to the circuit with 17.3 seconds in hand over Hamilton.

From there, it looked increasingly easy for Antonelli. Despite a minor scare emerged when his Mercedes powertrain suffered a small derate on the run to Massenet, but the team was able to identify the issue.

Yet, Stroll’s crash was late race drama, producing the safety car which wiped out Antonelli’s now nearly-30-second lead over Hamilton.

After five laps in formation while the Aston Martin was being cleared, Antonelli appeared to have kept the Ferrari behind him covered off through the opening laps, although the race was halted when Leclerc also crashed at the final corner.

Antonelli maintained his cool to keep Hamilton in check on the eventual final restart.

Hamilton had been one of many drivers to pick up a penalty for speeding in the pitlane, although he was able to serve this correctly when switching to the softs during the safety car period.

Isack Hadjar crossed the finishing line behind Pierre Gasly, but was promoted to third when the Alpine driver was hit with two five-second penalties – although for speeding in the pitlane.

Hadjar initially had an investigation dangling over his head for a safety car infringement, where the Red Bull driver appeared to slow down ahead of George Russell and conceded more than ten car lengths to the car ahead. But following the race, the officials decided that no further investigation was needed meaning Isack keeps his P3 finish.

Oscar Piastri was classified in fourth even though it was a difficult weekend for McLaren, which was celebrating their 1000th Grand Prix, which had to retire Lando Norris as the reigning champion battled a problematic battery.

The Racing Bulls duo of Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad captured a big set of points. Lindblad had earlier interrupted the hold-up play by Williams to get both cars into the points, and did not make a single pitstop. Instead, he benefitted from a red flag, where he was able to switch to the softs for the final stage of the race.

Gasly was demoted to seventh ahead of Alex Albon and Esteban Ocon, while a late 10-second penalty awarded to Nico Hulkenberg promoted Sergio Perez into the top ten to provisionally score Cadillac’s first Formula 1 point – although he is also awaiting the stewards to make a call on whether he false-started on the restart.

Checo had earlier served a penalty for mistakenly starting in Gabriel Bortoleto’s empty grid box, as the Audi driver started the race from the pitlane. However, post race the officials have added a ten-second penalty for Perez for being out of position at the second start of the Monaco race. Which means Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso is promoted to P10 and scores one point.

Hulkenberg had hit Carlos Sainz on the first lap of the lap 71 restart at the hairpin, tagging the Williams driver into the wall. Sainz’s race was ruined further when he was hit by Franco Colapinto moments later at Portier.

Russell endured a miserable race after failing to serve a five-second speeding penalty during his second stop under the safety car. The Mercedes mechanics immediately got to work on the car, rather than wait for five seconds.

After dropping to a net fourth after his stop under the safety car, Russell’s chances of points was a non issue when he was awarded a drive-through penalty after the team unable to clear the five-second arrears – and he crossed the line in P13, behind Fernando Alonso and Bortoleto.

So an eventful Monaco Grand Prix. Andrea Kimi Antonelli has achieved his first win around the streets of Monte Carlo with a controlled drive and with his teammate finishing outside in the points, the championship leader has built up more important points.

Monaco Grand Prix, race results:
1 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 2:23:31.243
2 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +6.271s
3 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford +23.394s
4 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes +24.261s
5 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford +26.553s
6 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford +29.010s
7 Pierre Gasla Alpine-Mercedes +30.369s
8 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes +33.413s
9 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari +37.140s
10 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda +41.899s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +42.748s
12 George Russell Mercedes +43.353s
13 Nico Hulkenberg Audi +44.102s
14 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes +48.964s
15 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari +49.153s*
Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes DNF
Charles Leclerc Ferrari DNF
Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda DNF
Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes DNF
Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari DNF
Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari DNF
Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford DNF
*Ten-second time penalty for being out of position at the second start

Kimi Antonelli wins an important qualifying session in Monaco from two champions to take the top grid spot at Formula 1’s most glamorous street circuit.

The championship leader driver set a lap time of one minute, 12.375 seconds, which was just 0.043 seconds quicker than Verstappen for his fourth pole in five Grands Prix while Ferrari struggled.

That was despite the Scuderia dominating Friday practice with a 1-2 result, but Saturday saw Mercedes recovering as Antonelli topped FP3.

Antonelli then took provisional pole with a time of one minute, 12.375 seconds on his first Q3 lap, putting him just 0.001 seconds ahead of Verstappen who had Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton 0.177 seconds behind in third.

Under pressure was Hamilton’s teammate Charles Leclerc, who aborted his opening lap after almost hitting the barriers at Massenet, so he quickly came out for a second lap.

The Ferrari driver backed off on that one too, so Leclerc went for a third push lap, where there was minimal traffic, and he managed to beat Antonelli’s initial time by only 0.024 seconds.

That was with one minute remaining though, as other were not finished and first to jump ahead was Verstappen with one minute, 12.094 seconds, just before Hamilton went 0.185 seconds slower.

Then came Antonelli with a time of one minute, 12.051 seconds to snatch pole from Verstappen and Hamilton, who will share the second row alongside Leclerc who hit the barriers in the final sector at the end.

Fifth went to Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Isack Hadjar with one minute, 12.434 seconds, while it was another disappointing result for Antonelli’s teammate George Russell in sixth.

The Mercedes driver was 0.394 seconds off the pace ahead of an all-McLaren fourth row with Oscar Piastri seventh and Lando Norris eighth, while ninth went to Pierre Gasly and Liam Lawson took tenth.

It was a close battle to reach Q3 as just two thousandths of a second separated Gasly in P11 and Alex Albon P12, who will share the sixth row with Williams teammate Carlos Sainz.

That marked only the second time that Williams had both cars reach Q2 this season after Miami, the second qualifying session in Miami also being topped by Verstappen.

In Monaco P13 went to Audi driver Nico Hulkenberg, who is set to be joined on the seventh row by Gasly’s teammate Franco Colapinto, while Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad took P15.

Although Gabriel Bortoleto progressed to Q2, he was unable to set a lap in the second appearance so he has claimed P16 for the grid following his crash at Nouvelle Chicane late in Q1.

The Audi driver was having a strong weekend up to then, but he clipped the inside barrier upon entry and caused a red flag with approximately two minutes left in the session.

That caused a chaotic end to Q1, topped by Leclerc, where Sainz managed to move his Williams out of the elimination zone and push Esteban Ocon into P17.

That was part of a shock double Q1 exit for Haas with Oliver Bearman in P19, but outside of that the usual suspects were eliminated early with Cadillac’s Sergio Perez splitting the Haas cars.

In P20 was his teammate Valtteri Bottas ahead of an all Aston Martin back row with Fernando Alonso in P21 and Lance Stroll taking P22.

So a thrilling end to qualifying with the Mercedes driver beating two legendary drivers to get pole position at Monaco. As overtaking is so tricky around this tight street circuit, winning pole is a major step in securing race victory.

Monaco Grand Prix, qualifying results:
1 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:12.051
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford 1:12.094
3 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:12.279
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:12.351
5 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford 1:12.434
6 George Russell Mercedes 1:12.445
7 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes 1:12.624
8 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes 1:12.765
9 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes 1:13.226
10 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford 1:13.412
11 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes 1:13.787
12 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes 1:13.815
13 Nico Hulkenberg Audi 1:13.902
14 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes 1:13.995
15 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford 1:14.248
16 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi No time
17 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari 1:14.722
18 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari 1:14.747
19 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari 1:14.814
20 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari 1:15.283
21 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda 1:15.349
22 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda 1:16.061

Kimi Antonelli achieved his fourth consecutive victory in a thrilling Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, following his battle with George Russell in which his Mercedes teammate was forced to retire with a power unit issue.

Russell was leading the race after an intense fight with Antonelli, including a wheel-to-wheel moment at the final chicane, when his Mercedes car suffered a power unit failure on lap 30. After parking up at Turn 9, Russell jumped out of the car in a furious rage as he not only saw a chance to win his first Grand Prix since the season opener in Australia disappeared, but also saw teammate Antonelli get a major points boost in the drivers’ championship.

The Silver Arrows pair had been aggressively trading the lead over the first half of the race, with a moment on lap 24 at the final chicane, with Antonelli briefly passing Russell off the track before being ordered to hand the position back.

Russell’s exit allowed Antonelli a much more relaxed second half of the race to cruise home to a fourth consecutive win, dramatically expanding his championship lead on his teammate to 43 points. As he saw Kimi cruise to victory, George said he was “lost for words” by his retirement.

Behind Antonelli, both McLaren cars suffered a disastrous race, which started with a backfiring choice to start on intermediates on a slightly damp track. As the field did two extra formation laps due to trouble for Arvid Lindblad’s Racing Bulls, Oscar Piastri questioned the decision of starting on the grooved tyres, and both he and teammate Lando Norris soon had to come in for slicks, despite Norris briefly taking the lead at the start.

As both McLarens dropped back into the midfield pack, Piastri clattered into the back of Alex Albon at the hairpin, forcing Albon into retirement and Piastri to the pits for a new front wing. The McLaren driver was handed a 10-second penalty.

Lando’s race was even worse, as he had to retire on lap 40 at the hairpin with a suspected gearbox failure. The following virtual safety car period was the perfect time for the frontrunners to switch from softs to mediums on what turned out to be a straightforward one-stop race as the expected rain never hit the track.

With both McLarens eliminating themselves from contention, fifth-starting Max Verstappen moved up to second some nine seconds behind Antonelli, as the four-time champion tried to fend off a spirited Lewis Hamilton in the Ferrari. At the start of lap 62, Hamilton finally passed Verstappen into Turn 1 to take second, finishing ten seconds behind the winner.

Behind the pair, Charles Leclerc and Isack Hadjar also battle in a Ferrari versus Red Bull duel for fourth place, with Hadjar handed a 10-second penalty for weaving on the straight, which almost led to a high-speed collision. Leclerc found a way past for fourth but finished over 44 seconds behind Antonelli after surviving a big moment out of the final chicane.

Hadjar, who cleared his time penalty under a late virtual safety car period, was then handed a stop-and-go penalty for ignoring yellow flags, but the Red Bull driver still hung onto fifth due to the huge gap between the five remaining frontrunners and Formula 1’s midfield.

Alpine came out on top of that midfield battle once more, with Franco Colpainto taking a career-best sixth place ahead of Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson and teammate Pierre Gasly, who bounced back from a bad weekend with eighth. Carlos Sainz and Oliver Bearman rounded out the top ten to take the final points for Williams and Haas respectively.

Piastri ended his ordeal outside the points in P11, in the company of both Audi cars, while a total of six cars retired from the race.

Alongside Lindblad, Albon, Russell and Norris, Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso disappeared from the race with what the team called a problem with his seat. Cadillac’s Sergio Perez suffered a collapse of his front-right suspension and was fortunate to stop the car in the pitlane.

So congratulations to Andrea Kimi Antonelli in winning in Canada and has a significant 43 points over his title rival and teammate. George Russell’s non-finish makes it tricky in terms of the championship. The next race is Monaco and it will be fascinating how the battle resumes between the Silver Arrows.

Canadian Grand Prix, race results:
1 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:28:15.758
2 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +10.768s
3 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford +11.276s
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari +44.151s
5 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford +1 lap
6 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes +1 lap
7 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford +1 lap
8 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes +1 lap
9 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes +1 lap
10 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari +1 lap
11 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes +2 laps
12 Nico Hulkenberg Audi +2 laps
13 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +2 laps
14 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari +2 laps
15 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda +4 laps
16 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari +4 laps
Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari DNF
Lando Norris McLaren-Mecedes DNF
George Russell Mercedes DNF
Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda DNF
Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes DNF
Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford DNS

George Russell achieved pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix, snatching the top spot from teammate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli.

Lando Norris initially led the way in Q3 until the final series of laps, with both Mercedes cars struggling to get a decent lap until that point, Russell even having to abandon his first attempt.

But in the final seconds of qualifying Antonelli jumped Norris, only for an ecstatic Russell to find another tenth to take pole with a time of one minute, 12.579 seconds lap. That means Russell and Antonelli will line up in the same position they started sprint race from, when the pair clashing at Montreal’s Turn 1.

It is a Papaya second row with Norris and Piastri, just like in the sprint, followed by Lewis Hamilton in fifth.

Russell was not the only contender to make life tricky for himself, with many drivers struggling to get the front tyres into the right operating window, even doing double warm-up laps.

Max Verstappen said his car was like “driving one ice” but managed to sneak in a sixth-fastest lap, ahead of teammate Isack Hadjar and Charles Leclerc, who was unable to be competitve and was very vocal about his Ferrari’s shortcomings on the team radio.

After taking a point in the sprint, Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad backed up his impressive Montreal form with ninth in qualifying, with Alpine’s Franco Colapinto in tenth.

In the battle to survive Q2 and advance to the final shootout, Lindblad and Colapinto both starred by out-qualifying their more experienced teammates. As Hadjar led the way in Q2, Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg missed the cutoff by just 0.029 seconds in P11, followed out by Lawson and teammate Gabriel Bortoleto.

Pierre Gasly continued to suffer a difficult weekend with issues in his Alpine, breaking out of parc ferme to turn the sprint race into a test session. Gasly qualified P14, with Carlos Sainz a disappointing P15 in the Williams and Bearman P16 for Haas.

Antonelli led Q1 with a time of one minute, 13.380 seconds lap, which was over a tenth quicker than Norris and Piastri. There were no huge difficulties for any of the frontrunners, although Leclerc left it late to set a laptime after going off on his first attempt.

In the background Gasly survived elimination despite abandoning on his first lap. Bortoleto also managed to go through at the expense of Haas driver Esteban Ocon, who was first out in P17.

Alex Albon was also dropped out after not making the start of sprint qualifying, continuing a troubled weekend on his side of the Williams garage. The four cars from Aston Martin and Cadillac were also eliminated, with Fernando Alonso only P19. Valtteri Bottas qualified last after going off at Turn 1 on his final flyer.

So Mr Saturday aka George Russell achieved a fantastic day result with the sprint win earlier followed by pole position for the main race. This performance is a positive step if he wants to challenge his Mercedes teammate for the world championship.

Canadian Grand Prix, qualifying results:
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:12.578
2 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:12.646
3 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes 1:12.729
4 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes 1:12.781
5 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:12.868
6 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford 1:12.907
7 sack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford 1:12.935
8 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:12.976
9 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford 1:13.280
10 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes 1:13.697
11 Nico Hulkenberg Audi 1:13.886
12 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford 1:13.897
13 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:14.071
14 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes 1:14.187
15 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes 1:14.273
16 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari 1:14.416
17 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari 1:14.845
18 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes 1:14.851
19 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda 1:15.196
20 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari 1:15.429
21 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda 1:16.195
22 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari 1:16.272

George Russell won the sprint race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve despite a clash with his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli.

Mercedes, which locked out the front row ahead of the McLarens, Ferraris and Red Bulls, maintained its performance advantage at the start as polesitter Russell led Antonelli, despite the Silver Arrows having previously suffered from slow getaways in 2026.

The only change among frontrunners was Lewis Hamilton going around the outside of Oscar Piastri in Turn 2 for fourth, as Lando Norris stayed third and Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar still made up the top eight.

Antonelli started applying pressure Russell on lap five, and attacked on the next lap around the outside in Turn 1, but he was given no space by Russell and cut through the grass.

Antonelli was not giving up and launched another attempt at Turn 8 but braked perhaps too late and bounced across the grass, losing second place to Norris. “That was very naughty,” Kimi complained of George, though the TV replays did not seem to relate his claim.

Briefly challenged by Hamilton, Antonelli pulled away and eventually closed the gap to Norris, who himself was pressuring leader Russell. The attacked from the McLaren on the last lap, around the outside in Turn 1, but could not make the move stick, so the top three remained unchanged.

Hamilton had to withheld pressure from Piastri and eventually collapsed to sixth on the last lap, behind the McLaren driver and Ferrari teammate Leclerc. Verstappen finished seventh.

Hadjar ended up three laps down after two pitstops, meaning Arvid Lindblad collected the last available point after completing the race on hard tyres for Racing Bulls.

Further back, Lance Stroll finished highest of all five cars which started from the pitlane, having encountered a front suspension issue shortly before the start. Valtteri Bottas, Oliver Bearman, Alexander Albon and Pierre Gasly were in the same starting situation but were outraced by the Aston Martin.

So an exciting sprint race with the major talking point featuring the battle between the two Silver Arrows. The championship leader Antonelli believed he was pushed off by Russell, while team boss Toto Wolff commented on the team radio to not complain and focus on the racing.

Canadian Grand Prix, sprint results:
1 George Russell Mercedes 28:50.951
2 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes +1.272s
2 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes +1.843s
4 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes +9.797s
5 Charles Leclerc Ferrari +9.929s
6 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +10.545s
7 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford +15.935s
8 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford +29.710s
9 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes +31.621s
10 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes +36.793s
11 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford +61.344s
12 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +61.814s
13 Esteban Ocon Alpine-Mercedes +64.209s
14 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari +70.402s
15 Nico Hulkenberg Audi +72.158s
16 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda +1 lap
17 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari +1 lap
18 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari +1 lap
19 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes +1 lap
20 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes +1 lap
21 Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls-Ford +2 laps
Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda DNF

George Russell gained the upper hand in sprint qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix, by being quicker than his teammate and current championship leader Kimi Antonelli.

In a heavily upgraded Mercedes W17, Russell turned on the championship leading teammate Antonelli to take P1 in the top ten shootout, which was marked by contenders going for two flying laps on the same set of soft tyres.

Russell led after the first round of laps and then found another gear to set a lap time of one minute, 12.965 seconds on Pirelli’s soft tyres. As the last driver on the track Antonelli set the fastest third sector but that was not enough to keep Russell off pole, Kimi conceding just 0.068 seconds.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were third and fourth as McLaren, which also brought another round of car upgrades, although around three tenths on Mercedes on the first competitive session of the weekend.

The Ferraris were up next with Lewis Hamilton getting the better of teammate Charles Leclerc, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen down in seventh as he and eighth-placed teammate Isack Hadjar appeared to struggle for grip on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve’s bumpy track surface.

Impressive Racing Bulls Arvid Lindblad was ninth ahead of Williams driver Carlos Sainz.

The medium-tyred SQ2 segment was led by Russell, who set a lap time of one minute, 13.026 seconds lap to put 0.439 seconds on Hamilton, with their respective teammates Antonelli and Leclerc behind them.

Verstappen survived a poor lap to advance in ninth, while Sainz found time on his final flying lap to drop Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg into the elimination zone, the Hulk heading teammate Gabriel Bortoleto.

Franco Colapinto dropped out in P13, followed by Haas duo Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman, the latter going off the track on his final flying lap.

Despite having qualified, Fernando Alonso was unable to take part in the next stage due to a crash in SQ1. Alonso went on straight at Turn 3 after locking the tyres, apologising to his Aston Martin team after damaging the front wing into the barriers.

That incident halted the battle in the final moments of SQ3 because it brought out a red flag with just one minute and 46 seconds on the clock, which prompted a frantic rush to get another attempt in by cars who were in danger of elimination.

As Hamilton topped the session, points contender Pierre Gasly was unable to get across the finish line in time to start a final lap. It meant Sergio Perez was first out in P17, followed by the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll and Gasly. Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas was P20 and last of the drivers to set a lap time.

Williams driver Alex Albon was unable to take part in sprint qualifying after an unfortunate encounter with a marmot/groundhog in free practice sent him into the wall. Due to the damage, which prompted a gearbox and power unit change, Williams ran out of time to rebuild Albon’s car.

Lawson, who also caught a red flag in free practice after being struck by a hydraulic leak, also could not take part in the session as a result of his mechanical issues.

So well done George Russell with the sprint pole. This is a positive step in his fightback on his Mercedes teammate for the championship. Roll on the sprint race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

Canadian Grand Prix, sprint qualifying results:
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:12.965
2 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:13.033
3 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes 1:13.280
4 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes 1:13.299
5 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:13.326
6 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:13.410
7 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford 1:13.504
8 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford 1:13.605
9 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford 1:13.737
10 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes 1:14.536
11 Nico Hulkenberg Audi 1:14.595
12 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:14.627
13 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes 1:14.702
14 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari 1:14.928
15 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari 1:15.305
16 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda No time
17 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari 1:16.002
18 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda 1:16.354
19 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes 1:16.642
20 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari 1:16.866
21 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes No time
22 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford No time

That was a wild and entertaining Miami Grand Prix and yet Andrea Kimi Antonelli came out on top to achieve his third consecutive Formula 1 victory for Mercedes.

The Mercedes driver underlined his title ambitions by winning and resisting the pressure from reigning world champion Lando Norris.

Antonelli held off Norris after a dry race at the Miami International Autodrome, with Oscar Piastri completing the podium for McLaren after a late-race fade by Charles Leclerc, who had a spin on the final lap, allowing George Russell into fourth and Max Verstappen to take sixth.

The race started three hours earlier than planned as organisers tried to find a window to get the 57-lap race due to the constant threat of rain and thunderstorms.

But despite the prospect of rain, the race started in dry conditions, with the majority of the field setting off on medium tyres. At a chaotic start, polesitter Antonelli suffered another poor getaway, allowing Red Bull’s Verstappen and Ferrari’s Leclerc to immediately draw alongside as they went towards Turn 1.

Antonelli locked up and went off, while Leclerc took a cautious line into the corner that ended him the lead. Behind him Verstappen spun off on the exit, with the Red Bull rapidly pointing his car in the right direction again. In doing so, Verstappen was lucky not to be collected by the chasing pack, but he did drop down to P10 battling the Williams drivers.

That allowed McLaren duo Norris and Piastri through to claim third and fourth, ahead of Russell and Hamilton, with the latter surviving contact with Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.

On lap 4 Antonelli passed Leclerc for the lead, with Leclerc returning the favour on the following lap while Norris also followed the Ferrari driver through into second.

The race was neutralised after just five laps due to two separate incidents. In a spectacular-looking accident, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was flipped into a low-speed barrel roll after being clipped by Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson at Turn 17, Gasly ending up halfway up the barrier but escaping unhurt. Lawson also retired with terminal damage.

Meanwhile, Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar crashed at the chicane while working his way up the order, the Red Bull driver having been demoted to a pitlane start due to a technical issue. Making an unforced error, Hadjar tagged the inside wall at Turn 14 which sheared off the front-left suspension and sent his car into the barriers at low speed.

After the lap 12 restart Norris snatched the lead away from Leclerc ahead of Antonelli, followed by a duelling Piastri and Russell. Verstappen had been the only frontrunner to pit for hards under the safety car, which initially dropped him down to P16. But as the expected rain did not materialise and the frontrunners also picked up hard tyres around the halfway point, Verstappen emerged into a lead and yet it was short-lived.

On much fresher tyres, Antonelli and Norris were both quickly able to repass Verstappen as he lost touch with the leaders, while Leclerc was fourth as Piastri passed Russell for fifth. Hamilton lost out after a slower pitstop, which demoted him to seventh and last of the frontrunners, while the Ferrari driver also appeared to nurse a damaged Ferrari after his early contact with Colapinto.

With no rain forthcoming, the race turned into a straight-forward one-stopper, and a duel between Antonelli and Norris as Verstappen struggled to keep up. On balance, Norris looked the quicker of the two but was unable to find a way past in Antonelli’s dirty air/.

But Antonelli managed to survive downshift issues and hang on to take his third consecutive win from pole, expanding his world championship lead on Russel to 24 points.

On worn Pirelli rubber Verstappen fell into the chasing group of Leclerc, Piastri and Russell in the final ten laps of the race. True to form Verstappen did not go down without a fight, clinging on to third around the outside of Leclerc, but he was powerless to hold off the Ferrari for much longer, and both Piastri and Russell also worked their way past.

Leclerc looked destined to take the final podium spot, but spun on the final lap, tapping the wall but luckily avoiding harder contact. Piastri went through to take third 27 seconds behind Antonelli, while Russell muscled his way to fourth ahead of Verstappen and Leclerc.

Hamilton finished a lonely seventh, with Colapinto eighth after a strong weekend performance, the Argentine running as high as fourth after delaying his first stop until lap 32.

In the background Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon defeated the Haas drivers to take an encouraging double points finish in ninth and tenth for the underperforming Williams outfit, being the last two cars finishing on the lead lap.

So a thrilling race in Miami with Antonelli taking victory. Kimi is riding this winning form with so much confidence and has the performance edge over his Mercedes teammate Russell. The next race will be Canada, in which last year George won. He needs to do the same to reduce the points gap.

Miami Grand Prix, race results:
1 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:33:19.273
2 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes +3.264s
3 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes +23.828s
4 George Russell Mercedes +43.051s
5 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford +43.949s
6 Charles Leclerc Ferrari +44.245s
7 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +53.753s
8 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes +61.871s
9 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes +82.072s
10 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes +90.972s
11 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari +1 lap
12 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +1 lap
13 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari +1 lap
14 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford +1 lap
15 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda +1 lap
16 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari +1 lap
17 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda +1 lap
18 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari +2 laps
Nico Hulkenberg Audi DNF
Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford DNF
Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes DNF
Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford DNF

Championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli has achieved a third successive pole at the Miami Grand Prix, resisting the challenge from Max Verstappen.

Antonelli’s first effort in Q3 was enough to keep his rivals away, with Verstappen’s final effort taking him second ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

The qualifying session got underway at 4.00 P.M. local Miami time in hot conditions, with ambient temperatures of 34C and track temperatures well into the 50s.

Verstappen led the early running in Q1 ahead of Antonelli, Norris and the Ferraris, before Antonelli took command with a time of one minute, 28.653 seconds lap.

At the bottom of the order, the usual suspects Aston Martin and Cadillac soon proved out of touch with the rest of Formula 1’s midfield. There was also trouble for Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto, who after a delayed start with a power unit issues, leaving Gabriel on the side of the track. It was the second issue in as many sessions after teammate Nico Hulkenberg did not make the start of the sprint race.

With six elimination spots in Q1, that meant just one car would be drop out, with Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad taking P17 after the first runs. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was under threat as the McLaren driver used tyres for his final run. He then suffered from a poor first sector leaving him on the edge in P16.

Antonelli initially led Hamilton in Q2, with Norris now the McLaren driver finding himself in a spot of trouble. Norris aborted his first run after going off the track at Turn 6 but found enough time to take seventh, half a second up on the P10 cutoff.

As Verstappen went to the top with one minute, 28.116 seconds, both Alpines advanced to Q3 at the top of Formula 1’s midfield, with Franco Colapinto again ahead of Pierre Gasly as he was in sprint qualifying. It was the Alpine driver’s first Q3 appearance since Azerbaijan 2024.

Nico Hulkenberg was eliminated in P11 by a significant four-tenth margin, followed out by Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson. The four cars from Haas and Williams were also eliminated.

In the deciding top ten shootout Antonelli set the beach mark with a time of one minute, 27.798 seconds, the first lap that improved on Lando’s sprint pole. Thanks of a rapid first sector, that effort was three tenths up on Leclerc and Verstappen. They were followed by Norris and Russell, with just half a tenth separating positions two to five.

Antonelli was one of several drivers who was unable to improve on the second attempt, but his first Q3 run was good enough to claim his third successive Grand Prix pole. Verstappen came closest on his final Q3 flying lap to jump Leclerc into second, revealing the Red Bull’s progress in Miami after a troubled start to the season.

Behind Leclerc, sprint race winner Norris beat Russell to the second row in fourth and fifth respectively, with Hamilton sixth. Piastri was a subdued seventh in the second McLaren, while Colapinto grabbed his best-ever qualifying result in eight. Hadjar and Gasly rounded out the top ten.

What an amazing qualifying result from Kimi Antonelli. So much confidence in the Mercedes and this is his third consecutive pole position. It will be fascinating if the Miami Grand Prix will run as there’s a threat of thunderstorms on race day.

Miami Grand Prix, qualifying results:
1 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:27.798
2 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford 1:27.964
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:28.143
4 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes 1:28.183
5 George Russell Mercedes 1:28.197
6 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 1:28.319
7 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes 1:28.500
8 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes 1:28.762
9 Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford 1:28.789
10 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes 1:28.810
11 Nico Hulkenberg Audi 1:29.439
12 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford 1:29.499
13 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari 1:29.567
14 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes 1:29.568
15 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari 1:29.772
16 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes 1:29.946
17 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford 1:30.133
18 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda 1:31.098
19 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda 1:31.164
20 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari 1:31.629
21 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari 1:31.967
22 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi 1:33.737