Championship leader Oscar Piastri and Kimi Antonelli qualified in third and fourth place, respectively, while Lando Norris dropped to seventh, potentially impacting his championship aspirations as he currently trails Piastri, his teammate, by 10 points.
Russell and Verstappen’s previous collision in the Spanish GP remains a focal point, intensifying interest in their anticipated battle during the opening turn, which is separated from the starting line by 186 meters.
The starting grid for the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix ????????
Russell and Verstappen on the front row ????#F1 #CanadianGP pic.twitter.com/JdWtO1kyO8— Formula 1 (@F1) June 14, 2025
Verstappen was 0.160 seconds behind Russell and is now just a point away from suspension. Russell aims to leverage this situation for an advantage, particularly in the race’s opening moments.
“Today was fantastic. That last lap was one of the most thrilling of my life,” Russell shared.
This marks the first pole secured by drivers other than Piastri, Verstappen, and Norris this season, and it’s Russell’s sixth time finishing a qualifying session atop the leaderboard in Formula One. He was candid when discussing Verstappen’s precarious penalty points situation.
“I’ve got a few more points on my license to spare. Let’s see,” Russell remarked.
“I’m not expecting him to give me more room; possibly, it could be the opposite as he tries to prove a point. I’ll be cautious about that. We are here to win and won’t do anything that jeopardizes the race.”
“I’m very pleased with our achievement today, being on the front row,” Verstappen said. “I hope for a strong race tomorrow.”
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton qualified fifth, while his longtime rival Fernando Alonso finished in sixth. Charles Leclerc had a promising FP3 session but could only secure eighth in the qualifying due to a series of errors on his drive.
“We did the best we could with the setup,” Hamilton stated.
“We’ve been pushing hard all weekend to improve the speed, but I don’t believe the car will go much faster.”
“I don’t think we can compete with the leaders, and we just have to come to terms with that situation.”
George. Max.
Your front row for the #CanadianGP! #F1 pic.twitter.com/VCCXSNoOk5— Formula 1 (@F1) June 15, 2025
Rookie Isack Hadjar initially qualified ninth but received a three-place penalty for obstructing Carlos Sainz during Q1. Sainz’s teammate, Alex Albon, secured ninth on the grid, while Franco Colapinto of Alpine moved up to tenth in a commendable performance after some challenging races since replacing Jack Doohan.
Verstappen’s teammate, Yuki Tsunoda, clocked the 11th-fastest time but will start at the back due to a ten-place penalty for a red flag incident in FP3.
Lance Stroll, the only Canadian driver in the current F1 lineup, failed to progress past Q1 and will begin his home grand prix in 17th place for Aston Martin.
First Published: Jun 15, 2025 4:57 PM IST
