After an intense teammate battle between the two Mercedes drivers in the Saturday sprint race, the stage was set for the FORMULA 1 LENOVO GRAND PRIX DU CANADA 2026 on Sunday afternoon. This time, the two would have a full race distance to fight for the lead, as they locked out the front row of the grid in qualifying.
Some rain earlier in the day had made the circuit slightly damp. Most teams thought the slick tyres were the ideal starting tyre, but a few teams took the gamble on starting the race on the intermediate tyres. Audi and Cadillac fit the intermediate tyres on both cars, while Williams took the gamble on only Carlos Sainz’s car. But most notable was McLaren, which decided to use the intermediate tyres on both of their cars.
Although the rain had stopped, the team was still hoping the cooler temperatures would give them an advantage in heating the tyres over the slick-runners. It didn’t help that there were two additional formation laps. The first was for Arvid Lindblad, who couldn’t get his car into gear in P9. The second was for the marshals, who were still wheeling the stranded Racing Bulls to the pit entry when the cars returned from the formation lap.
When the race finally started, George Russell had a poor start from pole position, getting passed by his teammate Kimi Antonelli. But it was Lando Norris who had the best start, jumping both Mercedes drivers in the first corner to take the lead. It would be short-lived, as he pitted to exchange his intermediate tyres for a set of mediums at the end of the second lap, as his teammate had done a lap earlier.
Overall, it was a race to forget for McLaren. After pitting and rejoining near the rear of the field, both drivers had difficulties. Oscar Piastri went on to receive a ten-second penalty for slamming into the side of Alex Albon at the hairpin early in the race. Norris had to make an unexpected second pit stop early in the race for what the team described as a “reliability issue”. He retired on lap 40 with a power unit issue.
The demise of McLaren left the two Mercedes drivers to continue the fight they were having in Saturday’s sprint race. Russell retook the lead on lap six on the run to the final chicane. Antonelli attempted to hold onto the position but locked up and had to cut the corner. But Russell would struggle with the hairpin multiple times.
On lap 12, he suffered a big lockup in the hairpin, allowing Antonelli to take the lead, but only momentarily as Russell fought back in the final chicane. Antonelli continued the battle into the first corner, but couldn’t get by. Another wide line in the hairpin five laps later put Russell on the defensive into the final chicane. The teammates were wheel-to-wheel into the chicane, but Antonelli could not overtake.
Antonelli’s chance to get back into the lead came another five laps later when Russell again ran wide in the hairpin. Antonelli overtook on the main straight before the final chicane. He only held onto this position for a couple of laps before suffering a massive lockup of his own in the hairpin, allowing Russell by. The duo were side-by-side into the final chicane, banging wheels before Antonelli cut the chicane. He was forced to give back the position, despite feeling he was forced off.
Unfortunately, the thrilling battle for the lead went up in smoke for Russell. His power unit called it a day on lap 30 at the turn eight chicane. The Brit parked up and threw his headrest in frustration as his championship aspirations took a serious hit. This is a move that the stewards will discuss with Russell after the race, as throwing debris poses a safety risk, even though the virtual safety car was deployed.
The field used the VSC as an opportunity to make a cheap pit stop. The departure of a Mercedes left Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton in podium positions. Hamilton had a strong start to get to net P3 in the opening laps, but Verstappen overtook him on lap nine.
Charles Leclerc lost out in the pit lane, as Ferrari double-stacked their cars and had a slow stop on Hamilton’s car. This allowed Isack Hadjar to split the two Ferraris for P4. When the race restarted, Hadjar was under pressure from Leclerc behind. He raised the eyebrows of the stewards for making multiple defensive moves down the back straight. Leclerc managed to get by, and Hadjar was eventually handed a ten-second penalty for the incident.
The virtual safety car was deployed briefly for a second time to clean some debris at the pit entry. This was from Sergio Perez’s suspension, which failed as he peeled into the pit lane. Perez was the sixth retirement in what looked like a race of attrition. In addition to those already mentioned, Fernando Alonso had also retired from the race. There was also a third VSC with 15 laps remaining, momentarily neutralizing the action and allowing the drivers with penalties to serve them.
The final stint of the race was focused on the battle between Verstappen and Hamilton for the second step of the podium. After spending many laps behind the Red Bull, Hamilton promoted himself to P2 with a move into the first corner on lap 62. Hamilton took the outside line as the Canadian crowd roared. Verstappen clung on in the closing laps, but couldn’t get close enough to challenge for position as the laps ticked down.
He had to settle for P3, which is the Dutchman’s first podium finish of the season. It was also Hamilton’s best finish of the season. But it was Antonelli’s day, as he took his fourth consecutive grand prix victory, extending his lead in the World Drivers’ Championship.
Next on the calendar, Formula One will return to Monaco, which marks the start of the European leg of the season. The Monaco Grand Prix is scheduled for the weekend of June 7.
| Pos. | Driver | Laps | Time | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 68 | 1:28:15.758 | 25 |  | |
| 2 | 68 | +10.768 | 18 | ||
| 3 | 68 | +11.276 | 15 | ||
| 4 | 68 | +44.151 | 12 | ||
| 5 | 67 | +1 Lap | 10 | ||
| 6 | 67 | +1 Lap | 8 | ||
| 7 | 67 | +1 Lap | 6 | ||
| 8 | 67 | +1 Lap | 4 | ||
| 9 | 67 | +1 Lap | 2 | ||
| 10 | 67 | +1 Lap | 1 | ||
| 11 | 66 | +2 Laps | |||
| 12 | 66 | +2 Laps | |||
| 13 | 66 | +2 Laps | |||
| 14 | 66 | +2 Laps | |||
| 15 | 64 | +4 Laps | |||
| 16 | 64 | +4 Laps | |||
| DNF | 39 | ||||
| DNF | 38 | ||||
| DNF | 29 | ||||
| DNF | 23 | ||||
| DNF | 11 |
| 1 | K. Antonelli | 131 |  | |
| 2 | G. Russell | 88 | -43 | |
| 3 | C. Leclerc | 75 | -56 | |
| 4 | L. Hamilton | 72 | -59 |  |
| 5 | L. Norris | 58 | -73 |  |
| 1 | Mercedes | 219 | | |
| 2 | Ferrari | 147 | -72 | |
| 3 | McLaren | 106 | -113 | |
| 4 | Red Bull | 57 | -162 | |
| 5 | Alpine | 35 | -184 | |
