Canada, it couldn't be any more different to the last round of the season in Monaco but that's what makes it so special. A driver, team and fan favourite. Montreal always welcomes Formula 1 with open arms and is the perfect location to host round seven of the season.
With its unpredictable weather, barrier lined circuit, long straights and heavy braking zones; the Canadian Grand Prix is always something special.
The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, which is named after the countries most iconic driver, is a challenge for both man and machine. Brakes and engineers are put to the test and drivers need maximum commitment and concentration over the kerbs, through the chicanes and in avoidance of the barriers.
For a guide of the track, take a look at my Canadian Grand Prix Preview. Re-live last years race with my One Year Rewind for RichlandF1 and check out what the drivers got up to at the circuit on Thursday with my Canadian Grand Prix Thursday Snap Shot.
Here's my rolling report of the weekend which is updated with session reports straight after the chequered flag has been raised to halt the on track action. Just scroll down to see the session report that you want.
FP1
Rain flooded the circuit for first practice after a number of heavy downpours. The upgraded prototype Pirelli tyres that will make their debut at the Silverstone circuit for the British Grand Prix only made an appearance in the closing stages.
It was a quiet and tentative start to the session with just a handful of drivers emerging immediately to start their installation runs. Esteban Gutierrez opened up the time sheets with a 1m34.113 before the session started to build up.
Cars switched quickly from the wet to intermediate Pirelli tyres for their first runs with Mark Webber, Jean-Eric Vergne and Nico Rosberg swapping fastest times early on. Conditions proved tricky throughout as drivers explored the limits, Jules Bianchi found the escape road at turn three and numerous drivers took to the newly-laid asphalt run-off. All 22 drivers had set a time by the half way stage.
Drivers switched to slick tyres including the specially brought Pirelli prototype tyres for the final 10 minutes as the track dried out enough for slick tyres. With drivers pushing to the limit, Pastor Maldonado was the first car to find the wall at the exit of turn four. Paul Di Resta's final lap was good enough for first with a 1m21.020 to start Force India's 100th race weekend off on a positive note, beating Jenson Button by just under a second. Grosjean, Alonso and Raikkonen rounded out the top five.
The Red Bull pairing found themselves in ninth (Vettel) and 10th (Webber), with Hamilton down in 16th. Alexander Rossi made his 2013 FP1 debut and finished 20th. He finished six seconds off the pace in what was a tricky session.
FP2
Overcast but dry conditions welcomed drivers back on track for the second 90 minute practice session of the race weekend. It was a busy start to the session as drivers emerged to sample the prototype Pirelli tyre along with catching up on the running lost in FP1.
The time sheets kicked off straight away with Gutierrez again being first to put in a lap time, a 1m21.382. The Lotus duo were fast to displace him before the likes of Webber and Button emerged.
With a third of the session gone, Lewis Hamilton led Felipe Massa and Nico Rosberg. Mistakes were being made, including errors from the Red Bull Racing pair and Fernando Alonso (who narrowly avoided hitting the wall of champions) but the track continued to evolve. Adrian Sutil managed to get some air after launching his Force India over the kerb at the wall of champions. The schedule was typical of a free practice session, concentrate on short runs early on and complete some longer stints towards the end.
Fernando Alonso emerged as the fastest runner in second practice with a best time of 1m14.818, narrowly beating Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes. Grosjean performed strongly in third; a stark contrast to the last round in Monaco. Webber and Rosberg rounded out the top five with Massa and Vettel trailing close behind.
Button ended the day in ninth - just behind Sutil in 8th - but his session was curtailed by a gearbox problem. Di Resta also lost track time after an earlier issue and dropped to 13th, behind Ricciardo, Raikkonen and Perez in the second McLaren. Sauber looked slow in 17th and 18th and Bianchi finished fastest of the back markers, Chilton splitting Pic and van der Garde close behind.
FP3
The third and final practice session of the Canadian Grand Prix wasn't much of a practice session. Damage sustained to a barrier at the exit of turn 11 during a support race caused a 30 minute delay.
With two hours being needed between free practice three and qualifying - and with no scope to delay the latter - the session time was halved. An early rain shower meant it was a damp start to the session but a dry line did emerge for the final few minutes.
Mark Webber capitalised on being one of the last men across the line to finish fastest in FP3 with a best time of 1m17.895, three tenths clear of Adrian Sutil. Behind the German finished his former good friend Lewis Hamilton with Alonso and Vettel rounding out the top five.
The session started off in wet conditions and intermediates were the tyre of choice. It was a quiet start and the half way mark saw only half of the drivers with a lap time on the board. However slick tyres were needed for the final five minutes and the circuit burst into a flurry of activity.
Rosberg, Di Resta and Massa - who was just one of several drivers taking to the run-off area - were next up ahead of Button and Raikkonen. The Finn's team-mate Romain Grosjean finished just outside the top 10 ahead of Maldonado, who recently announced that his wife Gabby is expecting the couples first child, Ricciardo and Chilton.
Perez finished behind the Sauber duo, Vergne and van der Garde in 19th after failing to get a clear lap in. Pic, Bottas and Bianchi rounded out the results.
Qualifying
It's arguably fair to say that qualifying at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve doesn't have such a high importance in comparison to the last race in Monaco but track conditions certainly played its part. Grey clouds loomed over head and light rain returned prior to the first session which threw a curve-ball for the teams due to predictions of a dry race.
Q1
Despite the brief rain shower teams decided to fit the slick tyres for the first qualifying session. The 20 minute's to decide positions 17-22 kicked off with a flurry of activity as cars emerged to tackle the tricky track conditions.
Even on the out-lap, cars were already being caught out with the cool and greasy conditions. Most teams took the chance pit their cars after the initial first lap for intermediates. Jean-Eric Vergne was the first driver to set a time with a 1m28.204. That was soon bettered by Felipe Massa as the track became very busy indeed.
The front runners soon moved to the front as first Rosberg and then Vettel took their turn at the top. Drivers were struggling for grip, slipping and sliding around the numerous river-side chicanes. The times continued to change by the second as drivers pitted for fresh sets of intermediates with five minutes to go - where Hamilton and Rosberg provisionally led the field.
The fresh set of boots drastically changed the running order and by the chequered flag it was Paul Di Resta who failed to make it through to the second session. He wasn't the only big name to miss out, Grosjean also failed to make it through and could only manage 19th behind Charles Pic. Bianchi and Chilton both out qualified the Caterham of van der Garde.
Sebastian Vettel topped the first qualifying session with a 1m22.318 in what proved to be very tricky conditions. Alonso and Webber rounded out the top three ahead of an impressive Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa. Hamilton, Rosberg and Button made it through in sixth, seventh and ninth respectively whilst Raikkonen and Sutil were close to the drop zone in 13th and 14th.
Q2
Like the first qualifying session, it was a busy and frantic start to Q2. With just 15 minutes separating drivers from the top 10, it was a fresh set of intermediates and yet more light rain for them to contend with.
Even in the early stages, it was chaos as drivers scrambled for grip. Felipe Massa found the escape road at turn three and managed to find reverse whilst numerous drivers took to the now ample run-off area.
The final chicane proved to be particularly tricky with both Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton and Adrian Sutil taking to the escape road all in quick succession. The rain continued to intensify as the clock ticked down and the cars were lapping seven seconds slower compared to the first session.
It appeared that the run-off area was more popular than the track layout itself. For the second race running Felipe Massa put his Ferrari into the wall which caused the red flag to make an appearance. The Brazilian dropped his car under braking for turn three and severely damaged his car. The brief stoppage created a short two minute sprint for a final lap time.
There was a mammoth queue as cars vied for track position for the session restart. Button failed to get to the front of the pack and paid the consequences after he missed out on getting a final lap in - holding up Mark Webber in the process. Some drivers managed to find time but Hulkenberg, Perez and Maldonado all failed to make it through. Button finished 14th ahead of Gutierrez and Massa.
Hamilton topped the second qualifying session ahead of the Red Bull duo of Webber and Vettel. Bottas and the two Toro Rosso pairing all made it through to the top 10 shoot out as did Rosberg, Raikkonen, Alonso and Sutil.
Q3
The all too familiar queueing continued for the top 10 shoot out with Sebastian Vettel heading the field for the chance to take pole position. The drivers had just 10 minutes to find the best lap time.
Last years champion kicked of proceedings with a 1m25.425. After the first runs he was unbeaten and led Hamilton, Bottas and Rosberg. Cars pitted for a fresh set of intermediates - despite just four sets being brought - after their opening two lap stints.
The rain intensified once more and drivers started to struggle once more. The final sector was particularly tricky and drivers failed to make up any time on their previous benchmarks.
By the chequered flag it was Sebastian Vettel who broke Mercedes' run of pole positions to take first place in qualifying. Hamilton was up on his previous time but cut the final chicane on his last lap. The Brit had to put up with second place ahead of an impressive Valtteri Bottas who enjoyed the tricky conditions.
Nico Rosberg joined the Finn on the second row of the grid, ahead of Webber, Alonso and Jean-Eric Vergne. The Frenchman out qualified his team-mate who was slowest of the top 10 shoot-out, behind Sutil and Raikkonen.
It was a slightly anti-climatic end to what was a thrilling qualifying session in Canada.
The Race
Friday and Saturday provided the perfect ingredients for the perfect F1 race recipe. A mixed up grid, overtaking opportunities in abundance, a dry race with limited practice in those conditions but with uncertainty over potential rain showers. The feeling of uncertainty, unpredictability and excitement built up heavily prior to the race.
After the drama of the Canadian Grand Prix 12 months earlier, everyone had high expectations for the 2013 round. Were they met? It wasn't a classic but it wasn't dull either.
The cars lined up on the grid, the revs rose, the lights went out and we were racing in Canada. Off the line Vettel managed to get a good start but Bottas dropped behind Rosberg and Webber in the opening series of turns. Vettel had a clean first few corners to make a break and Alonso was on a charge too, taking a look at Bottas. The Spaniard managed to take the Finn into the chicane.
Hulkenberg straight lined the chicane as the cars crossed the line to start lap two. Massa and Di Resta had made up one position a piece but Button had dropped behind the former. The leading four started to open up a gap despite just under four miles of racing due to the considerably slower Valtteri Bottas - a queue started to form behind the rookie.
DRS was enabled on lap three but Vettel had already eked out a three second lead over Lewis Hamilton. The Brit had a decent gap over his team-mate too with Webber and Alonso trailing. Grosjean displaced the two Marussia drivers but his progress early on was slower than expected. Despite the tight confines on track it was a clean start and first few laps.
#BOTTAS continued to drop back and was displaced by Jean-Eric Vergne in his Toro Rosso. Sutil attempted to follow him through at turn three but there was brief contact and the German spun. He dropped down the field but his day went from bad to worse when he made contact with the second Williams, Maldonado, after the Venezuelan out-braked himself into turn 11.
Perez was overtaken by Felipe Massa with the help of the second DRS zone into turn one. Paul Di Resta momentarily lost his use of the drag reduction system but reported by lap nine that the issue had surpassed. Raikkonen also complained with a "soft" brake pedal but the Finn continued to put pressure on Daniel Ricciardo who had dropped back from Bottas in the Williams.
The margins started to extend by lap 10 with the top five of Vettel, Hamilton, Rosberg, Webber and Alonso all getting some clean air between themselves and the car in front. The leader was obviously pushing hard and replays showed the German brushing the wall at the exit of turn four. Meanwhile Vergne had plenty of space ahead of himself in sixth and Bottas was also having a lonely race early on.
Adrian Sutil was the first driver to take to the pit lane on lap 11 but he had to take to the grass when entering the pits to avoid the McLaren of Perez up ahead. Charles Pic also pitted for Caterham on the next lap. The on track action was as hot as ever and Raikkonen managed to sneak ahead of the slow Ricciardo for eighth place. Meanwhile Massa was challenging the Aussie but he was blocked into the hairpin.
He failed to defend the inside line on the run along the back straight but the Toro Rosso pitted for a fresh set of tyres. Webber was the first runner to take to pit road for the medium tyre, emerging in a pocket of clean air between Alonso and Bottas. Vergne and Perez followed him in earlier than Pirelli originally predicted.
Rosberg took to his Mercedes pit box on the following lap in reaction to Red Bull's move. The German emerged on a differing strategy, the supersofts, as Saturday superstar Bottas also pitted. By lap 16 the margin between the two leaders had moved to over seven seconds. Elsewhere Maldonado was given a drive through penalty for his lap three error.
The race leader took to the Red Bull pit box at the end of lap 16 for the medium compound tyre along with Alonso - which catapulted Hamilton into the provisional lead. However the Brit wasn't in the lead for long after taking to the pit lane at the end of lap 19. He returned to the track comfortably ahead of his team-mate but considerably behind Vettel.
Gutierrez, who was yet to stop, was passed by Bottas and Perez - who took him around the outside at turn one - on lap 22. By that time Raikkonen, Di Resta, Button and Grosjean were all yet to stop for the first time. Meanwhile Sutil and Massa went into battle once again at turn one but the German managed to fend off the Brazilians challenge around the outside.
Raikkonen peeled off into the pits on lap 23 but his exit was delayed after a problem at the rear of the car after the rear jack slipped. It was truly a class of one out front as the first third of the race closed in, Vettel had a 12.9 second lead over Hamilton by lap 24. Rosberg and Webber continued to battle behind as the gap hovered around the one second mark.
The Red Bull driver used DRS on lap 27 but he got far too close to the Mercedes under-braking for the chicane which put the Aussie off-line and brought Alonso into the fray. Button - who had slowed considerably - pitted at the beginning of lap 28 for the first time. The cars from third to fifth had bunched up considerably behind the leading car of Nico Rosberg.
The Aussie just couldn't squeeze past the Mercedes after a failed attempt at turn 14 and turn two on the following lap. However he put himself in a much better position on the following lap and with a bit of help from DRS he was through. Alonso followed him through with a second helping of DRS on the pit straight as Rosberg dropped from third to fifth.
After an 18 lap stint on the supersofts, Nico Rosberg pitted on lap 32 for a fresh set of boots. Bottas was overtaken by Sergio Perez and Kimi Raikkonen - who sat second in the championship - looked to pass him too. However he was lapped by championship leader Sebastian Vettel on lap 34. Lapped cars proved to be an unwelcome obstacle for Mark Webber after Giedo van der Garde turned in on him whilst the Red Bull lapped the Caterham - damaging his front wing. He was given a 10 second stop/go penalty for causing the incident.
Whether or not the lack of front down force was proving costly, Alonso still managed to pass him after Webber locked up into the hairpin. A number of strategies in full force meant that the order was slightly mixed by lap 46 as drivers attempted one, two and three stop strategies. Webber kicked off the two stoppers on lap 47 with Alonso reacting on the next lap but the yellow flags fluttered after van der Garde lost his front wing after contact with Nico Hulkenberg as the Sauber lapped him. This caused both cars to retire.
Leaders Vettel and Hamilton took the time to pit during the yellow flag and emerged easily clear of their respective challengers. Alonso started to close in on second placed man Hamilton by lap 52 as his tyres came to him. Paul Di Resta made his first and only stop of the race on lap 57 and Nico Rosberg joined him for the third time.
The gap between second and third began to hot up as Alonso entered the one-second DRS zone. The gap was slashed by traffic but the Spaniard challenged at the hairpin. He had another look into turn 14 but made it stick on the run to turn one despite the very minutest of contact. The fight wasn't over and they made yet more minor contact into the final chicane before the Ferrari started to eke out an advantage.
The race ended with Esteban Gutierrez burying his Sauber into the turn two barriers with four laps to go. However in contrasting fortunes it was Sebastian Vettel who took victory after lapping every car up until Nico Rosberg in fifth place.
Vergne took his best ever finish in Formula 1 with sixth place after a strong race. Di Resta made an unlikely one stop strategy work and showed fantastic pace on worn tyres to advance from 17th to 7th by the chequered flag after a relatively quiet 70 lap race. Massa just managed to pip Raikkonen for eighth but the Finn finished his 24th consecutive race in the points (equaling Schumacher's record).
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| (c) Marussia F1 Team |
The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, which is named after the countries most iconic driver, is a challenge for both man and machine. Brakes and engineers are put to the test and drivers need maximum commitment and concentration over the kerbs, through the chicanes and in avoidance of the barriers.
For a guide of the track, take a look at my Canadian Grand Prix Preview. Re-live last years race with my One Year Rewind for RichlandF1 and check out what the drivers got up to at the circuit on Thursday with my Canadian Grand Prix Thursday Snap Shot.
Here's my rolling report of the weekend which is updated with session reports straight after the chequered flag has been raised to halt the on track action. Just scroll down to see the session report that you want.
FP1
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| (c) Sahara Force India F1 Team |
It was a quiet and tentative start to the session with just a handful of drivers emerging immediately to start their installation runs. Esteban Gutierrez opened up the time sheets with a 1m34.113 before the session started to build up.
Cars switched quickly from the wet to intermediate Pirelli tyres for their first runs with Mark Webber, Jean-Eric Vergne and Nico Rosberg swapping fastest times early on. Conditions proved tricky throughout as drivers explored the limits, Jules Bianchi found the escape road at turn three and numerous drivers took to the newly-laid asphalt run-off. All 22 drivers had set a time by the half way stage.
Drivers switched to slick tyres including the specially brought Pirelli prototype tyres for the final 10 minutes as the track dried out enough for slick tyres. With drivers pushing to the limit, Pastor Maldonado was the first car to find the wall at the exit of turn four. Paul Di Resta's final lap was good enough for first with a 1m21.020 to start Force India's 100th race weekend off on a positive note, beating Jenson Button by just under a second. Grosjean, Alonso and Raikkonen rounded out the top five.
The Red Bull pairing found themselves in ninth (Vettel) and 10th (Webber), with Hamilton down in 16th. Alexander Rossi made his 2013 FP1 debut and finished 20th. He finished six seconds off the pace in what was a tricky session.
FP2
Overcast but dry conditions welcomed drivers back on track for the second 90 minute practice session of the race weekend. It was a busy start to the session as drivers emerged to sample the prototype Pirelli tyre along with catching up on the running lost in FP1.
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| (c) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team |
With a third of the session gone, Lewis Hamilton led Felipe Massa and Nico Rosberg. Mistakes were being made, including errors from the Red Bull Racing pair and Fernando Alonso (who narrowly avoided hitting the wall of champions) but the track continued to evolve. Adrian Sutil managed to get some air after launching his Force India over the kerb at the wall of champions. The schedule was typical of a free practice session, concentrate on short runs early on and complete some longer stints towards the end.
Fernando Alonso emerged as the fastest runner in second practice with a best time of 1m14.818, narrowly beating Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes. Grosjean performed strongly in third; a stark contrast to the last round in Monaco. Webber and Rosberg rounded out the top five with Massa and Vettel trailing close behind.
Button ended the day in ninth - just behind Sutil in 8th - but his session was curtailed by a gearbox problem. Di Resta also lost track time after an earlier issue and dropped to 13th, behind Ricciardo, Raikkonen and Perez in the second McLaren. Sauber looked slow in 17th and 18th and Bianchi finished fastest of the back markers, Chilton splitting Pic and van der Garde close behind.
FP3
The third and final practice session of the Canadian Grand Prix wasn't much of a practice session. Damage sustained to a barrier at the exit of turn 11 during a support race caused a 30 minute delay.
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| (c) Lotus F1 Team |
With two hours being needed between free practice three and qualifying - and with no scope to delay the latter - the session time was halved. An early rain shower meant it was a damp start to the session but a dry line did emerge for the final few minutes.
Mark Webber capitalised on being one of the last men across the line to finish fastest in FP3 with a best time of 1m17.895, three tenths clear of Adrian Sutil. Behind the German finished his former good friend Lewis Hamilton with Alonso and Vettel rounding out the top five.
The session started off in wet conditions and intermediates were the tyre of choice. It was a quiet start and the half way mark saw only half of the drivers with a lap time on the board. However slick tyres were needed for the final five minutes and the circuit burst into a flurry of activity.
Rosberg, Di Resta and Massa - who was just one of several drivers taking to the run-off area - were next up ahead of Button and Raikkonen. The Finn's team-mate Romain Grosjean finished just outside the top 10 ahead of Maldonado, who recently announced that his wife Gabby is expecting the couples first child, Ricciardo and Chilton.
Perez finished behind the Sauber duo, Vergne and van der Garde in 19th after failing to get a clear lap in. Pic, Bottas and Bianchi rounded out the results.
Qualifying
It's arguably fair to say that qualifying at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve doesn't have such a high importance in comparison to the last race in Monaco but track conditions certainly played its part. Grey clouds loomed over head and light rain returned prior to the first session which threw a curve-ball for the teams due to predictions of a dry race.
Q1
Despite the brief rain shower teams decided to fit the slick tyres for the first qualifying session. The 20 minute's to decide positions 17-22 kicked off with a flurry of activity as cars emerged to tackle the tricky track conditions.
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| (c) Sahara Force India F1 Team |
The front runners soon moved to the front as first Rosberg and then Vettel took their turn at the top. Drivers were struggling for grip, slipping and sliding around the numerous river-side chicanes. The times continued to change by the second as drivers pitted for fresh sets of intermediates with five minutes to go - where Hamilton and Rosberg provisionally led the field.
The fresh set of boots drastically changed the running order and by the chequered flag it was Paul Di Resta who failed to make it through to the second session. He wasn't the only big name to miss out, Grosjean also failed to make it through and could only manage 19th behind Charles Pic. Bianchi and Chilton both out qualified the Caterham of van der Garde.
Sebastian Vettel topped the first qualifying session with a 1m22.318 in what proved to be very tricky conditions. Alonso and Webber rounded out the top three ahead of an impressive Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa. Hamilton, Rosberg and Button made it through in sixth, seventh and ninth respectively whilst Raikkonen and Sutil were close to the drop zone in 13th and 14th.
Q2
Like the first qualifying session, it was a busy and frantic start to Q2. With just 15 minutes separating drivers from the top 10, it was a fresh set of intermediates and yet more light rain for them to contend with.
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| (c) Vodafone McLaren Mercedes |
The final chicane proved to be particularly tricky with both Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton and Adrian Sutil taking to the escape road all in quick succession. The rain continued to intensify as the clock ticked down and the cars were lapping seven seconds slower compared to the first session.
It appeared that the run-off area was more popular than the track layout itself. For the second race running Felipe Massa put his Ferrari into the wall which caused the red flag to make an appearance. The Brazilian dropped his car under braking for turn three and severely damaged his car. The brief stoppage created a short two minute sprint for a final lap time.
There was a mammoth queue as cars vied for track position for the session restart. Button failed to get to the front of the pack and paid the consequences after he missed out on getting a final lap in - holding up Mark Webber in the process. Some drivers managed to find time but Hulkenberg, Perez and Maldonado all failed to make it through. Button finished 14th ahead of Gutierrez and Massa.
Hamilton topped the second qualifying session ahead of the Red Bull duo of Webber and Vettel. Bottas and the two Toro Rosso pairing all made it through to the top 10 shoot out as did Rosberg, Raikkonen, Alonso and Sutil.
Q3
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| (c) Sky Sports F1 |
The rain intensified once more and drivers started to struggle once more. The final sector was particularly tricky and drivers failed to make up any time on their previous benchmarks.
By the chequered flag it was Sebastian Vettel who broke Mercedes' run of pole positions to take first place in qualifying. Hamilton was up on his previous time but cut the final chicane on his last lap. The Brit had to put up with second place ahead of an impressive Valtteri Bottas who enjoyed the tricky conditions.
Nico Rosberg joined the Finn on the second row of the grid, ahead of Webber, Alonso and Jean-Eric Vergne. The Frenchman out qualified his team-mate who was slowest of the top 10 shoot-out, behind Sutil and Raikkonen.
It was a slightly anti-climatic end to what was a thrilling qualifying session in Canada.
Pos Driver Team Time Gap
1. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m25.425s
2. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1m25.512s + 0.087s
3. Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault 1m25.897s + 0.472s
4. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m26.008s + 0.583s
5. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m26.208s + 0.783s
6. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m26.504s + 1.079s
7. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m26.543s + 1.118s
8. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1m27.348s + 1.923s
(c) Sky Sports F1
9. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus-Renault 1m27.432s + 2.007s
10. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m27.946s + 2.521s
Q2 cut-off time: 1m36.811s Gap **
11. Nico Hulkenberg Sauber-Ferrari 1m29.435s + 1.786s
12. Sergio Perez McLaren-Mercedes 1m29.761s + 2.112s
13. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1m29.917s + 2.268s
14. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m30.068s + 2.419s
15. Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari 1m30.315s + 2.666s
16. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m30.354s + 2.705s
Q1 cut-off time: 1m24.776s Gap *
17. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m24.908s + 2.590
18. Charles Pic Caterham-Renault 1m25.626s + 3.308
19. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1m25.716s + 3.398
20. Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth 1m26.508s + 4.190
21. Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth 1m27.062s + 4.744
22. Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault 1m27.110s + 4.792
107% time: 1m28.080s
The Race
Friday and Saturday provided the perfect ingredients for the perfect F1 race recipe. A mixed up grid, overtaking opportunities in abundance, a dry race with limited practice in those conditions but with uncertainty over potential rain showers. The feeling of uncertainty, unpredictability and excitement built up heavily prior to the race.
After the drama of the Canadian Grand Prix 12 months earlier, everyone had high expectations for the 2013 round. Were they met? It wasn't a classic but it wasn't dull either.
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| (c) Getty Images |
Hulkenberg straight lined the chicane as the cars crossed the line to start lap two. Massa and Di Resta had made up one position a piece but Button had dropped behind the former. The leading four started to open up a gap despite just under four miles of racing due to the considerably slower Valtteri Bottas - a queue started to form behind the rookie.
DRS was enabled on lap three but Vettel had already eked out a three second lead over Lewis Hamilton. The Brit had a decent gap over his team-mate too with Webber and Alonso trailing. Grosjean displaced the two Marussia drivers but his progress early on was slower than expected. Despite the tight confines on track it was a clean start and first few laps.
#BOTTAS continued to drop back and was displaced by Jean-Eric Vergne in his Toro Rosso. Sutil attempted to follow him through at turn three but there was brief contact and the German spun. He dropped down the field but his day went from bad to worse when he made contact with the second Williams, Maldonado, after the Venezuelan out-braked himself into turn 11.
Perez was overtaken by Felipe Massa with the help of the second DRS zone into turn one. Paul Di Resta momentarily lost his use of the drag reduction system but reported by lap nine that the issue had surpassed. Raikkonen also complained with a "soft" brake pedal but the Finn continued to put pressure on Daniel Ricciardo who had dropped back from Bottas in the Williams.
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| (c) Getty Images |
The margins started to extend by lap 10 with the top five of Vettel, Hamilton, Rosberg, Webber and Alonso all getting some clean air between themselves and the car in front. The leader was obviously pushing hard and replays showed the German brushing the wall at the exit of turn four. Meanwhile Vergne had plenty of space ahead of himself in sixth and Bottas was also having a lonely race early on.
Adrian Sutil was the first driver to take to the pit lane on lap 11 but he had to take to the grass when entering the pits to avoid the McLaren of Perez up ahead. Charles Pic also pitted for Caterham on the next lap. The on track action was as hot as ever and Raikkonen managed to sneak ahead of the slow Ricciardo for eighth place. Meanwhile Massa was challenging the Aussie but he was blocked into the hairpin.
He failed to defend the inside line on the run along the back straight but the Toro Rosso pitted for a fresh set of tyres. Webber was the first runner to take to pit road for the medium tyre, emerging in a pocket of clean air between Alonso and Bottas. Vergne and Perez followed him in earlier than Pirelli originally predicted.
Rosberg took to his Mercedes pit box on the following lap in reaction to Red Bull's move. The German emerged on a differing strategy, the supersofts, as Saturday superstar Bottas also pitted. By lap 16 the margin between the two leaders had moved to over seven seconds. Elsewhere Maldonado was given a drive through penalty for his lap three error.
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| (c) Sahara Force India F1 Team |
The race leader took to the Red Bull pit box at the end of lap 16 for the medium compound tyre along with Alonso - which catapulted Hamilton into the provisional lead. However the Brit wasn't in the lead for long after taking to the pit lane at the end of lap 19. He returned to the track comfortably ahead of his team-mate but considerably behind Vettel.
Gutierrez, who was yet to stop, was passed by Bottas and Perez - who took him around the outside at turn one - on lap 22. By that time Raikkonen, Di Resta, Button and Grosjean were all yet to stop for the first time. Meanwhile Sutil and Massa went into battle once again at turn one but the German managed to fend off the Brazilians challenge around the outside.
Raikkonen peeled off into the pits on lap 23 but his exit was delayed after a problem at the rear of the car after the rear jack slipped. It was truly a class of one out front as the first third of the race closed in, Vettel had a 12.9 second lead over Hamilton by lap 24. Rosberg and Webber continued to battle behind as the gap hovered around the one second mark.
The Red Bull driver used DRS on lap 27 but he got far too close to the Mercedes under-braking for the chicane which put the Aussie off-line and brought Alonso into the fray. Button - who had slowed considerably - pitted at the beginning of lap 28 for the first time. The cars from third to fifth had bunched up considerably behind the leading car of Nico Rosberg.
The Aussie just couldn't squeeze past the Mercedes after a failed attempt at turn 14 and turn two on the following lap. However he put himself in a much better position on the following lap and with a bit of help from DRS he was through. Alonso followed him through with a second helping of DRS on the pit straight as Rosberg dropped from third to fifth.
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| (c) Sky Sports F1 |
After an 18 lap stint on the supersofts, Nico Rosberg pitted on lap 32 for a fresh set of boots. Bottas was overtaken by Sergio Perez and Kimi Raikkonen - who sat second in the championship - looked to pass him too. However he was lapped by championship leader Sebastian Vettel on lap 34. Lapped cars proved to be an unwelcome obstacle for Mark Webber after Giedo van der Garde turned in on him whilst the Red Bull lapped the Caterham - damaging his front wing. He was given a 10 second stop/go penalty for causing the incident.
Whether or not the lack of front down force was proving costly, Alonso still managed to pass him after Webber locked up into the hairpin. A number of strategies in full force meant that the order was slightly mixed by lap 46 as drivers attempted one, two and three stop strategies. Webber kicked off the two stoppers on lap 47 with Alonso reacting on the next lap but the yellow flags fluttered after van der Garde lost his front wing after contact with Nico Hulkenberg as the Sauber lapped him. This caused both cars to retire.
Leaders Vettel and Hamilton took the time to pit during the yellow flag and emerged easily clear of their respective challengers. Alonso started to close in on second placed man Hamilton by lap 52 as his tyres came to him. Paul Di Resta made his first and only stop of the race on lap 57 and Nico Rosberg joined him for the third time.
The gap between second and third began to hot up as Alonso entered the one-second DRS zone. The gap was slashed by traffic but the Spaniard challenged at the hairpin. He had another look into turn 14 but made it stick on the run to turn one despite the very minutest of contact. The fight wasn't over and they made yet more minor contact into the final chicane before the Ferrari started to eke out an advantage.
The race ended with Esteban Gutierrez burying his Sauber into the turn two barriers with four laps to go. However in contrasting fortunes it was Sebastian Vettel who took victory after lapping every car up until Nico Rosberg in fifth place.
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| (c) Sky Sports F1 |
Sebastian Vettel dominates to take his debut Canadian Grand Prix victory
The triple world champion was a dominant force in Canada, making up for his last lap error back in 2011 that cost him his debut victory at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. The German put on a near faultless showing to take the 25 points. Fernando Alonso battled his way through the field to finish second after advancing ahead of Hamilton late in the race.
Hamilton dropped to third by the flag after struggling in the closing stages. However he managed to cross the line well clear of Mark Webber in fourth. Nico Rosberg had to resort to a three stop strategy but had such a large gap on Jean-Eric Vergne in sixth that he managed to emerge from the pit lane still holding fifth place.
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| (c) Sahara Force India F1 Team |
Adrian Sutil managed to survive a spin and a drive through penalty on route to the final points paying position in 10th - a double points finish for Force India in their 100th race. McLaren missed out on the points with Perez in 11th and Button in 12th, his one stop strategy didn't work. It was the first race that the team failed to score points since Abu Dhabi in 2009.
Grosjean progressed from 22nd to 13th but he also failed to make a one stop strategy work, in fact he had to resort to a two stopper in the end. Third placed started Valtteri Bottas dropped to 14th after a strong first stint but a contrasting end to the race. Ricciardo also dropped down the order by flag fall in 15th ahead of a clumsy Maldonado.
Bianchi managed to front the back markers in 17th with Charles Pic finishing some way behind in 18th. Chilton rounded out the race finishers but the Brit was 20 seconds clear of the Caterham driver.
Three drivers retired from the race. Esteban Gutierrez crashed out in the closing stages and Giedo van der Garde was an earlier retirement after colliding with Nico Hulkenberg 27 laps clear of the chequered flag. Hulkenberg also retired due to the contact.
Classified:
Pos Driver Team Time/Gap
1. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h32m09.143
2. Fernando Alonso Ferrari + 14.408s
3. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes + 15.942s
4. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault + 25.731s
5. Nico Rosberg Mercedes + 1m09.725s
6. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
7. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
8. Felipe Massa Ferrari + 1 lap
9. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus-Renault + 1 lap
10. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
11. Sergio Perez McLaren-Mercedes + 1 lap
12. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes + 1 lap
13. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault + 1 lap
14. Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault + 1 lap
15. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 2 laps
16. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault + 2 laps
17. Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth + 2 laps
18. Charles Pic Caterham-Renault + 2 laps
19. Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth + 3 laps
20. Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari + 7 laps
Fastest lap: Webber, 1:16.182
Not classified/retirements:
Driver Team On lap
Nico Hulkenberg Sauber-Ferrari 45
Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault 43
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