Canada – Free Practice 1: There’s Mercedes…and the others!

The weather is beautiful and warm at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the first free practice session of this Canadian Grand Prix. The air temperature is 18 degrees and the track temperature is around 27 degrees for the start of the weekend.

Note that Pirelli is offering teams here its three softest tire compounds from its range of five. These are exactly the same types of rubber as those offered in Monaco fifteen days ago.

Lando Norris, who admitted that the Canadian track was his favorite on the simulator, is the first to set a time with his McLaren at 1:23.598 on Medium tires. Meanwhile, his teammate Carlos Sainz sports aerodynamic measurement equipment as often seen during private testing.

At Williams, they decided to give a chance to the local, Nicholas Latifi, who is replacing Robert Kubica for this first practice session. The Canadian already avoids a groundhog that ventured onto the track… we remember that last year, Romain Grosjean had an accident, fatal for the animal and the front wing of his Haas, with a groundhog.

The hometown boy suiting up for #FP1. Enjoy it @NicholasLatifi 🤜🤛#CanadianGP 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/wAE56RZUjV

— ROKiT WILLIAMS RACING (@WilliamsRacing) 7 juin 2019

Top teams are not in a rush to hit the track. It is still very dusty, and the likes of Mercedes, Ferrari, or Red Bull are waiting for others to clean the tarmac before they start chasing the clock.

However, after half an hour of trials, all the drivers recorded a time. Valtteri Bottas takes the lead with a lap time of 1:13.495. Quite rare and noteworthy, his teammate Lewis Hamilton clocks exactly the same time to the thousandth. As usual at the start of the weekend, the Ferraris remain discreet in 5th and 8th place with Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel.

The conditions are improving quickly as the track gets rubbered in. The two Mercedes teammates are enjoying themselves and trading the fastest lap. The German team has brought an upgraded power unit this weekend and, in terms of performance, it seems to be working for the Silver Arrows.

NEWS: We can confirm the introduction of the new Phase 2 @MercedesBenz Power Unit for the #CanadianGP to be run by all Mercedes-powered cars this weekend pic.twitter.com/8hr5LLcI1W

— Mercedes-AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) 6 juin 2019

In the Top 10, the two Racing Point cars stand out in 4th and 5th places, with Sergio Pérez ahead of Lance Stroll, always comfortable at home. The Renaults also take 6th and 8th places. Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hülkenberg are hoping to leave the bad memories of the start of this season behind them to begin a new cycle in the French team’s season.

In the last part of the session, the Red tires, the softest, are out. Romain Grosjean is the first to set a significant time on these tires. He places his Haas in 6th position, ahead of the two Ferraris. Lewis Hamilton stays on Medium tires but nevertheless improves the fastest time.

Trapped in his garage, Max Verstappen is chomping at the bit. The Red Bull mechanics have dismantled the underbody of the Dutchman’s RB15. Is there a problem, or have they decided to mount the new diffuser that Pierre Gasly tested? In fact, the two drivers are testing two different versions of the diffuser. The driver returns to the track for the last half hour.

The Virtual Safety Car is deployed after Antonio Giovinazzi went off track, losing the rear of his Alfa Romeo at the exit of the second chicane on the circuit. The left rear suspension of the Italian’s car is broken, and he can only wait for the track marshals to intervene and clear his car.

⚠️ VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR ⚠️@Anto_Giovinazzi has spun and grazed the wall at Turn 9#CanadianGP 🇨🇦 #F1 pic.twitter.com/7OciDnkbOT

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 juin 2019

Ferraris unleash the horsepower (prancing!) and with Medium tires challenge the two Mercedes. Charles Leclerc takes 3rd place, less than a second behind the fastest time, and Sebastian Vettel finishes in 4th position, behind a surprising Carlos Sainz! It’s still far for the Reds, but we know performance increases over the weekend for Scuderia, which is announced as the main challenger to Mercedes.

Sebastian Vettel is still not at ease at the wheel of his SF190. He spins in the hairpin during an attempt at a fast lap. Too much aggression for the German who locks his wheel and is overtaken in the provisional standings by Kimi Räikkönen driving a finally competitive Alfa Romeo.

Vettel pointing the wrong way at the hairpin 🔄#CanadianGP 🇨🇦 #F1 pic.twitter.com/QBDo1aBtEU

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 juin 2019

Further down the standings, the Toro Rossos are struggling on this track, which does not seem to suit the characteristics of their chassis. Alex Albon and Daniil Kvyat are only in 16th and 18th place. They are ahead of the two Williams, with George Russell ahead of Latifi. Pierre Gasly is also having difficulties, in a distant 13th place while his teammate Verstappen is in 4th.

Small alert at the end of the session for Valtteri Bottas, whose team detected a fuel pressure problem. Lewis Hamilton, meanwhile, retains the best time with 1:12.767.

The complete ranking of FP1:

FP1 CLASSIFICATION: @MercedesAMGF1 comfortably ahead, but it's early days…#CanadianGP 🇨🇦 #F1 pic.twitter.com/xxtPb5jOUw

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 juin 2019