Mercedes seized control of the only practice run at the Canadian Grand Prix, with Kimi Antonelli fastest ahead of George Russell in a session repeatedly halted by incidents. The one-hour FP1 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve showcased Mercedes' upgraded package as teams scrambled for data before Sprint Qualifying later on Friday.
Antonelli arrived in Montreal with a 20-point championship advantage over Russell and converted it into immediate pace, his 1m13.402s topping the timesheets by 0.142s. Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton was third, 0.774s back, with Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen completing the top five at +0.953s and +0.964s respectively.
With just a single practice session on a Sprint weekend, all 22 cars headed out as the pit exit went green at 1230 local time on the 2.71-mile island circuit. Within minutes Alpine's Franco Colapinto reported, "my throttle is not working," as he limped back to the pits, where the team worked on an electrical issue with the power unit.
Grip was at a premium on the dusty surface. Lando Norris skated through the run-off at the final chicane and Verstappen clipped the grass at Turn 7, though the Red Bull driver initially set the pace with a 1m15.895s on Pirelli's hard compound before a Virtual Safety Car neutralised proceedings around the 10-minute mark.
Liam Lawson's session ended almost as it began when his Racing Bulls stopped at Turn 5 with a mechanical problem, prompting the first red flag and a four-minute extension to the clock. Once running resumed, Oscar Piastri skipped over the final chicane and Hamilton briefly cut across the grass at Turns 8/9 as drivers battled the low-grip conditions.
After 20 minutes Russell moved to the top with a 1m15.760s, only for Antonelli to respond on a 1m15.414s. Piastri became the first driver under 1m15s with a 1m14.963s on the hard tyre before a second stoppage near the 25-minute mark when Alex Albon hit a groundhog exiting Turn 7, inflicting heavy damage on his Williams and leaving little time for repairs ahead of Sprint Qualifying. The delay added a further 15 minutes to the session, and most teams stayed on the hard compound when the track went green.
As the circuit improved, Mercedes traded fastest laps, with Antonelli lowering the benchmark to 1m14.392s on hards. There were still plenty of off-track moments: Norris cut across the Turn 3/4 chicane, Verstappen ran wide at Turn 8, Antonelli went deep at Turn 1, and Russell glanced the Turn 2 barrier but continued.
With just over 15 minutes to go Russell became the first of the frontrunners to bolt on softs, vaulting to P1 on a 1m13.850s. Antonelli soon replied with the decisive 1m13.402s, while Russell's next push lap included a trip over the Turn 1 run-off and later a spin that ended with a light tap on the Turn 2 wall before he rejoined.
A heavier impact followed for Esteban Ocon, who speared into the barrier head-on after a spin exiting Turn 4, destroying the nose of his Haas and prompting the third red flag. The sequence of stoppages underlined a scrappy hour that left little margin for long-run work.
Mercedes' headline speed and smooth execution around the interruptions will be encouraging as the upgraded car gets its first competitive test. Attention now turns to Sprint Qualifying later on Friday, where rivals will look to respond and teams facing repairs - notably Williams after Albon's clash with a groundhog - race the clock to be ready.
Source: formula1.com