What We Learnt After the Canadian Grand Prix
It was short trip to North America for Formula One this last weekend for the Canadian Grand Prix. Some teams were leaving Montreal more than happy with their result and others were left wondering what went wrong. But what did we learn from the race weekend?
Engine Problems Aren't Going Away For Mercedes
After a triple header that seemed to be plagued with problems for Mercedes-powered cars, Canada didn't give them any reprieve. Alex Albon had been nursing an issue with his engine from the start of the race and it was because of an engine failure that the Williams driver ultimately had to retire from the Canadian Grand Prix. It's not the news that Mercedes or any of their customer teams wanted to hear.
With Albon's DNF, Williams, Aston Martin and Mercedes have all had at least one driver retire with engine issues. The only team that has had no issues yet is McLaren. From the outside, it doesn't seem like there's any rhyme or reason to the engine failure that will sometimes affect one driver and not the other. Signs are pointing towards the engines not coping well with high temperatures. If that is the case, then the Mercedes-powered cars might be in for a rough time at some circuits.
Kimi Antonelli is Quickly Getting Used to Formula One
The young, rookie driver took his maiden podium at the Canadian Grand Prix. Antonelli is now one of the youngest drivers to take a podium after finishing third in the race. It was a well-deserved podium for the Mercedes driver, who kept his cool and stayed composed over the 70 laps.
By lap one, he had already overtaken Oscar Piastri and in the latter stages of the race he managed to fend off both McLaren drivers. After only finishing one race in the triple header, this is more than a welcome result for Antonelli. But it's also a sign that he's settling in Formula One quickly and is happy to battle against some of the more experienced drivers.
Ferrari Seem to Lose Pace While Others Find It
Early signs showed that the Canadian Grand Prix could be a strong weekend for Ferrari. However, the performance they put in through practice wasn't able to be replicated through qualifying and the race. Charles Leclerc qualified in P8 and Lewis Hamilton was starting in P5. Race day wasn't any better for either driver. After running over a groundhog on lap 13, Hamilton's car had too much damage to be competitive. On Leclerc's side of the garage, his pace was not great and mixed with his race engineer not listening to him about strategy, it was a very frustrating race.
It's a pattern that the Scuderia should be familiar with by now, with many of the races this season going the same way. A weekend that starts by looking promising and ends with the team scratching their heads about what went wrong. Upgrades seem to be around the corner, with mentions of them coming to Austria. But is it going to be enough to turn the season around for Ferrari? We'll have to wait and see.