George Russell RULED Out as Verstappen fights… see details in the comment
Kimi Antonelli tightened his grip on the 2026 Formula 1 world championship with a commanding victory at the Canadian Grand Prix, extending his lead in the standings after a dramatic and chaotic race in Montreal.
The Mercedes youngster delivered a brilliant drive to claim another major win, finishing ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen after an action-packed afternoon filled with retirements, crashes, changing weather conditions, and costly strategy errors.
Antonelli’s biggest title rival and Mercedes team-mate George Russell looked capable of challenging for victory during the opening half of the race. The pair continued their fierce rivalry from Saturday’s sprint race, battling wheel-to-wheel for the lead throughout the early laps. At one stage, the two Mercedes drivers even made slight contact at the final chicane while fighting aggressively for position.
Mercedes repeatedly warned both drivers over team radio not to risk throwing away a potential one-two finish, but disaster eventually struck on Lap 31 when Russell suddenly lost power. The Briton was forced to crawl across the grass before parking the car at the side of the circuit in frustration, angrily throwing his headrest onto the track after climbing out.
Russell’s retirement opened the door for Ferrari and Red Bull to capitalise. Lewis Hamilton recovered superbly from an early mistake and a slow pit stop to climb into second place. The seven-time world champion hunted down Verstappen in the closing stages and completed a decisive overtake into Turn 1 on Lap 62, securing his best Grand Prix finish since joining Ferrari.
Verstappen settled for third after struggling to match the pace of the leading Mercedes and Ferrari cars late in the race. Charles Leclerc finished fourth to add more valuable points for Ferrari.
Weather conditions before the start created major uncertainty across the grid, with teams split between soft tyres, medium tyres, and intermediate tyres after light rain hit the circuit. McLaren made the bold decision to start both drivers on intermediates, despite Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri warning the team over the radio that the track was already dry enough for slick tyres.
Although Norris briefly grabbed the lead at the opening corner thanks to a lightning start, both McLarens were forced to pit almost immediately for dry tyres, ruining their race strategy.
Things quickly became even worse for the team. Norris later retired after suffering a gearbox failure, while Piastri collided heavily with Alex Albon on Lap 13, damaging his front wing and earning a ten-second penalty. The Australian eventually finished outside the points in 11th place.
Elsewhere, Sergio Perez also suffered a bizarre retirement after his front-right suspension snapped while braking into the pit lane.
Behind the leading four drivers, Isack Hadjar impressed with fifth place for Red Bull, while Franco Colapinto, Liam Lawson, Pierre Gasly, Carlos Sainz, and Oliver Bearman completed the top ten and scored valuable points.
The victory gives Antonelli a massive 43-point advantage in the championship standings, further strengthening his position as the favourite for the 2026 Formula 1 world title.