Canadian GP – Race: Lewis Hamilton Sets the Record Straight

In continuation of Saturday, today’s race will be held on a dry track: the sky is overcast but no rain over Île Notre-Dame and the Gilles Villeneuve circuit. 21 degrees in the air and more than 35 degrees on the track.

As a reminder, Lewis Hamilton secured the 44th Pole Position of his career yesterday afternoon ahead of Nico Rosberg and Kimi Räikkönen. It’s 2 PM in Canada, 8 PM in France, and the drivers set off on the formation lap. No problems to report. All drivers will start from their grid positions; Jenson Button was announced to start from the pit lane but is finally positioned in nineteenth place.

The five red lights go out, and the 2015 Canadian Grand Prix is underway!

Lewis Hamilton keeps the lead. He had slightly shifted from his spot. Nico Rosberg didn’t have an ideal start, Kimi Räikkönen nearly stole his position. Romain Grosjean is threatened by Nico Hülkenberg, who passed Pastor Maldonado. First lap calm with no major incidents.

At the first pass over the line, Hamilton already has a one-second lead over Rosberg. Following are: Räikkönen, Bottas, Grosjean, Hülkenberg, Maldonado, Kvyat, Ricciardo, and Pérez. Great comeback from Massa, starting 16th, now 13th. Vettel is 15th. Jenson Button is observing his imposed penalty.

In the middle of the pack, there’s some action: Fernando Alonso went past Ericsson and then Massa. Sebastian Vettel tries to overtake him at the hairpin. He’s a bit too optimistic and gets shut out by the Spaniard but overtakes him on the return straight.

At the 5th lap, Lewis Hamilton has already opened up a satisfying gap over his teammate. He sets the fastest lap with a time of 1:18.699.

The first pit stop is made as early as the 8th lap: Sebastian Vettel is evidently opting for an aggressive strategy. He switches to soft tires. Felipe Massa continues his comeback and overtakes Ericsson with a bold maneuver. Slight contact between the left front wheel of the Williams and the sidepod of the Sauber in the 2nd corner.

After 10 Laps, Hamilton continues to widen the gap on Rosberg, who is 5 seconds behind. Kimi Räikkönen is a little over 5 seconds back. The Top 8 remains unchanged, Sergio Pérez overtakes Daniel Ricciardo for the gain. The winner of the 2014 edition drops out of the Top 10 in favor of Felipe Massa on Lap 14. The Brazilian’s Williams is currently the fastest in top speed at nearly 335 km/h.

Felipe Massa enlivens the race by continuing his overtakes: this time on Sergio Pérez on the 16th lap. The other Force India in Hülkenberg’s hands is under threat from Maldonado, who seems to be biding his time. He attempts the undercut by pitting on the 19th lap. We are now entering the pit stop window for drivers on two-stop strategies.

After 20 Laps, Lewis Hamilton is still leading the race ahead of Rosberg. Following are Räikkönen, Bottas, Grosjean, Hülkenberg, Kyvat, Massa, Pérez, and Ricciardo.

At the back of the pack, Fernando Alonso fiercely defends his position against Vettel, who has already caught up to him. The Spaniard is making no concessions to his former team. The German requests his radio to check the condition of his front wing. He insists and overtakes using DRS on Lap 21, Alonso has to yield. Meanwhile, Felipe Massa has now overtaken Daniil Kyvat and is now in 7th place.

Vettel continues to climb up the order: he more easily passes this time the two Toro Rossos of Verstappen and Sainz and then Ericsson’s Sauber.

In the Top 10, the first wave of pit stops is truly initiated by Daniel Ricciardo on Lap 25.

Kimi Räikkönen stops on the 27th lap. A difficult exit for Iceman, who spins at the hairpin on his out-lap. The image is similar to last year: the Finn had already performed the same maneuver last year.

Valtteri Bottas and Romain Grosjean stop on the following lap.

At the start of the 30th lap, the leader is in the pits: Lewis Hamilton changes tires in turn. He leaves without difficulties. Nico Rosberg takes the lead of the Grand Prix for a lap, but after a missed braking at the hairpin, he returns to the pits.

On Romain Grosjean’s side, the French driver is leading a wise race. He is now under pressure from Sebastian Vettel.

At mid-race, Lewis Hamilton maintains the lead in this Canadian Grand Prix. Nico Rosberg is still in 2nd position. However, the start of his second stint is better than the Englishman’s, now just one and a half seconds behind. Valtteri Bottas has snatched 3rd position from Räikkönen following his mishap at the hairpin. Felipe Massa is 5th ahead of Romain Grosjean. Sebastian Vettel is nestled behind the Lotus-Mercedes. Pastor Maldonado is in 8th. Nico Hülkenberg and Daniil Kvyat close out the Top 10.

One lap later, Vettel eases the pressure on Grosjean: he has to make his second pit stop and fits the soft tires once again. In the alternate strategies, Felipe Massa also stops but switches to the super-softs. At the front, Nico Rosberg is very close to benefiting from the DRS. However, his engineer advises him to take care of his brakes if he wants to reach the finish without issues. The memory of last year’s problems is likely resurfacing…

But the Mercedes are not currently troubled by the competition. Kimi Räikkönen is battling with Bottas. He pits for his second stop as early as the 41st lap, putting on the super-soft tires. He immediately sets the fastest lap by dropping below 1’17”. His teammate Sebastian Vettel passes Hülkenberg, who defended his position to the end. He spins at the sequence of the last corner while avoiding the wall. Vettel bounces over the curb and continues his race.

We have passed the 45th lap and at the front, the victory is far from being decided between Hamilton and Rosberg, who are navigating within a second of each other. Nico Rosberg is energized and improving his times. Another blow for Fernando Alonso: the third consecutive retirement for the 2005-2006 World Champion, so the catastrophic streak continues.

At the 50th lap, Hamilton is still the leader but with a limited margin. Nico Rosberg is following him. Valtteri Bottas is 24 seconds behind the leader. He is ahead of Kimi Räikkönen. Pastor Maldonado is 5th, in front of Sebastian Vettel. Felipe Massa, Nico Hülkenberg, Daniil Kyvat, and Sergio Pérez.

Disappointment for Romain Grosjean who had to unexpectedly pit. Misunderstanding with Will Stevens’ Manor, he cuts back too early on the backmarker and damages his left rear wheel. The penalty is given: 5 seconds will be added to the final standings of the French driver.

In the lead, the threat is getting closer for Hamilton: Rosberg can now open his DRS. Hamilton responds and regains a few tenths, putting him back outside the one-second gap.

After Grosjean’s mishap, it’s up to Pastor Maldonado to carry the Lotus colors high. However, he cannot resist Vettel, who moves up to 5th in the 57th lap. The German is now only 12 seconds behind his teammate. At McLaren-Honda, they are far from thinking about good positions: the curtain falls on the 58th lap with Jenson Button’s retirement.

At the 60th lap, Hamilton gained some breathing space over Rosberg. The Englishman has the cards in hand to win the Grand Prix. Two changes in the Top 10: Vettel over Maldonado and Romain Grosjean making a comeback by passing Pérez for 10th place.

We’re entering the very last laps: Nico Rosberg seems to have conceded. Final caution on the fuel level: consumption is always very critical here and there are only a few liters left in the Englishman’s car.

But no surprises in the final lap: **Lewis Hamilton wins the 2015 edition of the Canadian Grand Prix**! A great relief for the World Champion who controlled the situation throughout the race. Nico Rosberg and Valtteri Bottas complete this Québécois podium. Williams secures its first podium of the season. Romain Grosjean retains his point for the 10th place despite the 5-second penalty.