Verstappen wins tactical jousting match in Canada

The Canadian Grand Prix is one of my favorite entries on the calendar. The atmosphere is always good, the track is exciting, and it usually throws up a great bit of racing. Especially if the clouds decide to spray some water over the track.

And that’s exactly what we got. After a thrilling qualifying where Verstappen and Russell put down the exact same laptime, the race was already promising to become a very interesting one. Heavy rain made it so that the race would be started on the intermediate tyres. Not everyone got that memo though, because both Haas drivers started on the extreme wet tyres. That initially proved to be an amazing call, because they were so much faster than everyone else. It gave us the absolutely ridiculous sight of Magnussen in fourth rampaging towards the top three while Hulkenberg was putting pressure on former world champions Alonso and Hamilton. Sadly we’d quickly learn why Haas was the only team starting on the full wets: the track began drying up and soon enough the Haas drivers were more than three seconds per lap slower than the rest. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Ferrari reminds us what they’re capable of

We’ve gotten quite far into the race without a mention of Ferrari yet, and that’s because they were not that interesting here. Leclerc and Sainz qualified 11th and 12th and failed to really make up any ground at the start. Leclerc even had some engine troubles. That made the team go “Screw it” and gamble on a risky tactic. They put Leclerc on slick tyres as soon as the track began to dry while everyone else was still out on intermediates.

Did it work? 

Well, it’s a tactical call by Ferrari, what do you think?

Leclerc was going ten seconds slower per sector. Not per lap. Per sector. The tactic might have worked if the track dried up soon enough, but instead it began raining again. Leclerc was struggling out on track so much that he was even getting lapped with only a third of the race done. He came back in for intermediates but it really was no use. He ultimately retired the car in a mercy kill of his race.

Oh Ferrari strategy, how we have missed you. Except not really, please stop doing these things.

A final fight for the podium

The race stabilized for a while then, until it very much didn’t. The drivers slowly made the leap from intermediates to slick tyres. Norris took a gamble on a late switch, which was a brilliant move as it allowed him to close the gap to Verstappen a little, though it ultimately wasn’t enough. The track was still very wet in many places and his cold tyres meant that Verstappen could rock on by without much of a challenge. 

At least Norris kept his car on track though, which emphatically couldn’t be said for some of the other drivers. Sergio Perez spun and hit the wall. Carlos Sainz spun and hit Alex Albon. The result was a damaged Williams, a Red Bull with one less rear wing than it’s supposed to have, and a Ferrari facing very much the wrong way. That meant the Safety Car came out once again. Norris, Piastri and Verstappen decided to stay out while Mercedes drivers Russell and Hamilton took their chances on a fresh set of tyres.

Verstappen drove away with ease once the Safety Car made way again, but the real fight broke loose behind him. Hamilton took third place away from Piastri but soon saw his teammate appear in his mirrors. Russell ferociously fought to recover his forecast podium and credit where credit is due: his move on Hamilton was absolutely spectacular. 

It’s maybe a little disappointing to see such an incredible race still end with a Verstappen win, but honestly: I don’t mind it. Yes, I would prefer to see other people win so that there can be a title fight. But if Verstappen does win, then at least make him work for it. And that’s exactly what happened here. Each one of the top three finishers would have deserved the win today, and that alone made it one of the better races this season.