What Happened in the Canadian Grand Prix Qualifying?
The 2025 Canadian Grand Prix qualifying session has just ended, and it was full of action, drama, red flags, and surprises all the way through. The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve once again proved how tricky it can be, with many drivers struggling to find grip and making mistakes. In every part of qualifying, we saw drivers pushing their limits, changes in weather and track conditions, and a few unexpected eliminations that shook up the starting grid for Sunday’s race. Now let’s see what happened in Montreal, and who got pole position.
The first part of qualifying started with Gasly, Colapinto, and Antonelli going out on the yellow medium tires. Russell was the first to set a competitive time with a 1:12.574, closely followed by Antonelli, who was just 0.06 seconds behind. Both Bearman and Hamilton slid off at Turn Two, showing early on how hard it was to keep the rear of the car steady this weekend. Leclerc struggled on his first try with a 1:13.332. Soon after, Piastri set a 1:12.332 to go to P1, while Stroll was just behind with 1:12.517, and Alonso put in a strong lap for P3. Norris managed a 1:12.696 to be sixth at this point.
Leclerc improved with a 1:12.493 for second, but quickly after Verstappen jumped to the top with 1:12.273, only 0.059 seconds faster than the rest. Alonso, still on mediums, grabbed P1 with 1:12.239, while Hamilton set a 1:12.348 for fourth, and Tsunoda was holding on in P9. Suddenly, a red flag came out as Albon’s engine cover flew off down the straight, spreading debris everywhere. With 5:30 left, the session quickly restarted. Hamilton, Norris, and Russell all switched to new softs, with Norris leading the times at 1:11.826. Piastri was close, just 0.113 seconds slower, and Hamilton put in a 1:11.952. Colapinto was surprised with P6, Hadjar made it into P5, Tsunoda was tenth, and Hulkenberg did enough to progress. Ocon squeezed out Lawson at the last minute, and Albon made a clutch lap for P6, knocking Sainz out. Sainz got blocked by Hadjar on his final lap, and Hadjar will be investigated for it after the session finishes. The five drivers knocked out in Q1 were Bortoleto, Sainz, Stroll, who recently made his return, Lawson, and Gasly.
The second session began with Verstappen setting the pace, putting in a 1:11.638 for P1. Norris was extremely close, only 0.038 seconds behind in P2. Piastri slotted into third with 1:11.715, while Leclerc and Hamilton rounded out the top five early on. Tsunoda was holding P7 and Alonso P6, but Russell soon improved to 1:11.960 for sixth. Antonelli, just 0.146 seconds slower than his teammate, was eighth. Leclerc then went out on fresh softs, going purple in the second sector and jumping to P1 with 1:11.626. The top ten shuffled as some drivers, including Colapinto, Russell, Albon, Alonso, and Antonelli, tried the yellow tires. Russell managed a 1:11.570 for the fastest lap of the session, and Antonelli put in a crucial lap to bump Colapinto out of the top ten. Hadjar got himself into P9, and Alonso moved up to sixth, which dropped Tsunoda out of Q3 at the last second. Hulkenberg gave it everything but could only manage the thirteenth. The drivers eliminated in Q2 were Tsunoda, Colapinto, Hulkenberg, Bearman, and Ocon.
In the final shootout for pole, Hamilton and Hadjar started on used softs, while Albon was on mediums. The rest of the field went with fresh softs. Verstappen went fastest straight away, putting up a 1:11.248 for P1. Piastri was only 0.025 seconds slower and moved into P2. Leclerc’s first effort put him in a solid P3 with 1:11.729, followed by Alonso. Russell then went third with 1:11.516, and Antonelli slotted into fourth, just 0.073 seconds behind his teammate. Norris made a mistake at the final corner on his first run but improved to fifth on his second try with 1:11.625.
For the final runs, Verstappen, Russell, Alonso, and Antonelli all tried the yellow medium tires. Leclerc made a mistake and had to abandon his final lap, ending up with a heartbreaking eighth. Russell pulled off a stunning lap right at the end, stopping the clock at 1:10.899 to take pole from Verstappen, who could only manage a 1:11.059 for second. Piastri finished third with a 1:11.120, followed by Antonelli in fourth. Hamilton claimed fifth, Alonso was sixth, and Norris could not improve on his last lap, ending up seventh. Leclerc had to settle for eighth after his error, with Hadjar ninth and Albon rounding out the top ten.
