Lewis Hamilton has topped the timesheets in the opening practice session for this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve ahead of Formula 1 title rival Sebastian Vettel.
Hamilton has won the Canadian Grand Prix on five previous occasions, including his first ever F1 win back in 2007 so it was no surprise to see him set fast times and look to be the man to beat at this early stage.
After a disappointing weekend for Mercedes as a whole, it will be encouraged by both of its drivers’ times in FP1, with Bottas ending the session in third, 0.237s off the pace.
Both Mercedes drivers enjoyed trouble-free sessions which was in stark contrast to the Ferrari duo who both endured spins at Turn 2 in the hands of Vettel and Turn 7 in the hands of Raikkonen early on in the session. Both drivers put these spins behind them and ended FP2 in second and fourth respectively indicating we have another tight fight this weekend for the victory.
Force India shone and was best of the rest behind F1’s pacesetters. Sergio Perez was 0.769s off the pace in fifth while Esteban Ocon was just under a second down on Hamilton’s benchmark.
Max Verstappen was the highest placed super-soft runner in seventh ahead of Felipe Massa, Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat, all on the super-soft tyre.
Stoffel Vandoorne was encouraging 11th albeit on the ultra-soft tyre. Team-mate Fernando Alonso did not fare so well on his return after his sensational IndyCar outing a fortnight ago. The Spaniard suffered a hydraulic issue with 15 minutes on the clock remaining and could only manage 15th fastest.
Lance Stroll could only manage 12th on home soil and was well down once again on team-mate Massa.
Like the Ferrari pairing, Nico Hulkenberg was another driver who struggled with a lack of grip early on, spinning at Turn 6.
Carlos Sainz was the only driver to fail to set a time in FP1 after suffering some sort of engine issue in the first five minutes of the session.
