Breaking: Verstappen Dominate in Practice as Leclerc’s Cr…read more 

Verstappen Dominate in Practice as Leclerc’s Cr…read more 

The opening practice session of the Canadian Grand Prix saw Max Verstappen assert his dominance once again, setting the fastest time of FP1 amidst a flurry of soft tyre runs. The Dutchman, driving for Red Bull, laid down a benchmark time on the C6 compound, which was widely used throughout the session as teams looked to gather critical data ahead of qualifying.

In an unexpected turn of events, Williams had plenty of reasons to be optimistic after FP1, with Alex Albon putting in an outstanding lap to finish second, a mere 0.039 seconds behind Verstappen. The Thai-British driver showcased strong pace and composure, managing a clean run despite a session that featured several incidents. His teammate Logan Sargeant also delivered a strong showing, allowing Williams to place both of its cars in the top three by the end of the session — a rare and encouraging outcome for the Grove-based team.

Ferrari, on the other hand, experienced a session to forget. Charles Leclerc’s participation was abruptly cut short after he lost control of his SF-24 at Turn 4 and crashed into the barriers. The Monegasque driver appeared to misjudge his entry into the chicane, leading to a heavy impact that caused considerable damage to his car. As a result, Leclerc was unable to post a representative lap time and will face a compressed schedule heading into FP2 and the remainder of the weekend.

Carlos Sainz, Leclerc’s teammate, fared better and managed to salvage some pride for Ferrari by clocking the third-fastest time of the session. However, the pressure is now on the team’s mechanics to ensure Leclerc’s car is repaired in time for the second practice session, and on Leclerc himself to bounce back after the costly mistake.

Adding to the early drama, Franco Colapinto — taking part in the session as a rookie — brought out the yellow flags shortly after the session began. The young driver spun at Turn 2 as he got to grips with the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in his first official F1 practice outing. Fortunately, the incident resulted in no damage, and he was able to continue without issue.

Overall, FP1 in Montreal offered a mix of promising performances and early missteps. Verstappen’s pace confirmed Red Bull remains a force to be reckoned with, but Williams’ impressive showing turned heads. Meanwhile, Ferrari will be scrambling to regroup after a tough start to their Canadian weekend.