Canada Post Puts Stamp on 50 Years of Canadian Formula 1 Racing

Photo Credit: Canada Post

Race fans visiting a Canada Post outlet in recent weeks enjoyed both a reminder of the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix (or also known as the Formula 1 Grand Prix Du Canada) as well as a celebration referencing 50 years since the first Formula 1-sanctioned event was held on our soil. A tribute to five decades of Formula 1 action that occurred almost annually (excluding 1975, 1987 and 2009 seasons), races at Mosport Park, Circuit Mont-Tremblant and at the present home on the track now-known as Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is recalled with a special postal collection. Entitled simply as "F1 in Canada", Canada Post's stamp set commemorating the 2017 milestone features the artistry of Paprika of Montreal in detailing five of Formula 1's most brilliant personalities who ever sat behind a steering wheel for the grand prix.

The official unveiling of the F1 in Canada stamps was made on May 15th with Sir Jackie Stewart and Joann Villeneuve (Gilles Villeneuve's widow). Representing different eras for the sport competing over 50 years, the F1 in Canada stamp set features four past legends as well as one driver who is actively building on his already remarkable 11 seasons in Formula 1.

Three-time World Driving Champion and 55-time race winner Lewis Hamilton scored his initial career win at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve as a rookie in 2007 driving for McLaren. Winning five Canadian Grand Prix events including the previous two with Mercedes AMG, Hamilton is second only on the total victory chart to Michael Schumacher. Standing at the top of the podium on seven occasions, the record-setting German also earned a spot in the Canada Post stamp set. One record broken by Schumacher was all-time pole positions set by another F1 in Canada stamp image. An iconic Brazilian who won 65 career poles and inspired an entire generation of racers, Ayrton Senna claimed the Canadian Grand Prix in 1988 and 1990 en route to two of his three championship seasons. Popularly remembered as the "Flying Scot" during the 1960s and 1970s, Sir Jackie Stewart competed in the first Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport Park in 1967. Stewart would go on to win the race in Canada during the 1971 and 1972 season.

The fifth and most befitting inclusion on Canada Post's F1 in Canada stamp release is Gilles Villeneuve. A Canadian Formula 1 competitor fondly remembered for his aggression on the race track, one of six career victories captured by Villeneuve was the 1978 Canadian Grand Prix. This 2017 stamp set is the second time the late Gilles Villeneuve is honoured on a Canadian postage paper. Villeneuve was previously celebrated individually by Canada Post in 1997 with a two-stamp offering featuring his likeness wearing a helmet along with his Ferrari 312T3 and 312T4 race cars. Applied to permanent domestic stamps, the pressing of five driver images is also joined by the artwork of a white coloured modern Formula 1 car rushing on track on front of a grandstand and the former American Pavilion seen at the current track on Notre Dame Island.

Being a motorsport enthusiast as well as a person who appreciates philately, I am ashamed to say the stamp set came as a complete surprise to me when it appeared in late May. Generally Canada Post announces many of their planned collector stamp series heading into a new year but did not recall any advance notice on a pressing saluting 50 Years of Formula 1 in Canada. Saying that, I do not mean to express anything other than pleasant surprise for the five-stamp set's release.

Available Releases for the F1 in Canada Stamps and Cost

Pane of 5 Stamps: $4.25
Booklets of 10 featuring two of each stamp design: $8.50
Set of Five First Day of Issue Special Envelopes: $9.25
Uncut Press Sheet Measuring 14.125" by 23.937": $21.25

There is also a very limited edition framed print version of each stamp design available. With between 250 and 750 examples being prepared as a charming framed item, Hamilton, Schumacher, Stewart and Villeneuve ones cost $99.95. 500 Jackie Stewart framed prints will feature an authentic autograph from the three-time Formula 1 champion and will cost $199.95.

Hamilton Feels Canada's True Patriot Love With Fifth Victory In Grand Prix

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

In 2007, Lewis Hamilton won his very first Formula 1 grand prix on the Notre Dame Island. With the past grand prix round in Monaco, Hamilton collected his 44th victory in a series where he is a three-time World Championship. Prior to the 2016 Canadian Grand Prix, four of Hamilton's career victories were achieved on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Arriving as a hot driver after a lukewarm start to this season, the reigning Formula 1 World Driver's Champion successfully kept the momentum in his favour in Montreal.

A 70-lap event, the Canadian Grand Prix on the 4.361-kilometer Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was held under cloud cover Sunday with an air temperature that topped just 13 degrees. Despite the less than settling weather, rain did not play a part in the race in contrary to what some forecasts predicted. Another year when an affluent and dedicated crowd arrived for the grand prix, many drivers on the grid recognize the  Scoring pole in a very tight battle with Mercedes AMG teammate and current Formula 1 points leader Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton prime position for the 2016 Canadian Grand Prix would be challenged immediately when the lights went out to start the race. The Mercedes AMG cars launch resulted in a practical dead-heat between Rosberg and Hamilton. However, rising against the Silver Arrows, the prancing horse adorned in red that led the field into the first corner. Sebastian Vettel's Ferrari surged masterfully at the start of the Canadian Grand Prix soaring past the Mercedes-powered race cars.

As Vettel possessed an unopposed entrance into the first turn, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were still side-by-side. Following the pair's incident at the Spanish Grand Prix, another lap 1 battle proved nightmarish for the Mercedes AMG camp at the Canadian Grand Prix. Into the corner with Hamilton entering on the inside line, the #44 car exited the corner wide occupying the line of the #6 vehicle of Rosberg. Rosberg was forced off the race track onto the course's grass and was required to slow down to rejoin the Formula 1 pack out of turn two where he fell out of the top-five. After the race, Hamilton cited understeer into the first turn as the reason for crowding his teammate. In a post-race transcript, Nico Rosberg simply called the incident a bad maneuver from Hamilton while also responding "I had to try the move or accept I’d be behind him."

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

70 laps for the 2016 edition of the Canadian Formula 1 round occurred fairly smoothly as only three drivers were reported out of the race at the end. A Virtual safety car period to clear the McLaren-Honda of Jenson Button who suffered a blown power unit on lap 9 was a brief interruption. Another non-finisher in the Canadian Grand Prix was Felipe Massa who parked his Williams-Mercedes for an overheating issue. In the first six grand prix races of the 2016 season, Massa was distinguish as the only driver to have finished in the points in every event. Despite Felipe Massa's exit, Williams Martini Racing would leave Canada in a highly celebratory mood.

Nico Rosberg's eventful start to the race was compounded as the event transpired. Regaining ground through the distance of the grand prix, the #6 Mercedes AMG F1 W07 Hybrid race car proved uncooperative for the German. Rosberg would battle brake and fuel warnings inside his race machine. Costing him a chance at a podium finish, a late race tire puncture required Rosberg to make an unplanned second pit stop on lap 51. Returning to the race, Rosberg ran in fifth place and had instantly set sights on the fourth place Red Bull-Tag Heuer race car driven by Max Verstappen. Despite newer tires and the support of DRS, Rosberg was unable to undertake Verstappen who vigorously fought off the Mercedes AMG driver. On the second last lap for the pair, the Mercedes racer made one final attempt to pass the Red Bull Racing machine. Into turn 13, Rosberg made a late-braking maneuver on Verstappen but couldn't make his vehicle stick. Spinning his Mercedes AMG vehicle after the last-ditch effort for fourth place, Rosberg was able to hold into fifth place by a one-second margin on Kimi Raikkonen.  

The lead battle of the Canadian Grand Prix would be decided on pit road, or rather the lack of pit road for one car. A one-stop strategy proved the edge Lewis Hamilton needed to overcome the Ferrari. While Sebastian Vettel's two-stop plan required the Ferrari to push on soft and supersoft Pirelli racing rubber following the ultrasoft slicks many front-runners started the race on, Hamilton transitioned from ultrasoft to soft tires. When Vettel made his second pit stop on lap 37, the German driver's interval was not large enough to keep Hamilton behind him as he left pit lane. Depending upon his newer soft tires as a possible match to catch the Mercedes and perhaps retake the lead, the Ferrari was held at bay by Hamilton. In fact, Lewis Hamilton's fastest lap of the race was set on the third-last lap of the Canadian Grand Prix.

Crossing the line 5.011 seconds ahead of Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton gave credit to recently-departed boxing legend Muhummad Ali for inspiring him to the victory. "Over the last 10-15 laps all I could think of was Muhammad Ali – float like a butterfly, sting like a bee – because it really felt like I was floating. For me, and everyone I’m sure, he was such an inspirational figure, so that one was for him.", said Hamilton in post-race. He also fondly remembers the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve as the location of his first Formula 1 win during his rookie campaign in 2007. Winning his fifth Canadian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton closes in on the record seven wins at the event achieved in the career of the great Michael Schumacher.

Second place Sebastian Vettel started the grand prix spectacularly but simply came up short. Vettel was quick to cite the efforts of his Ferrari Formula 1 team, "I know that this car is a step forward, we know also that there’s still potential, and we’re not yet where we want to be. I also think we put ourselves under enormous pressure because we want to win. As a team, we came here and did our best, this weekend we were very close and hopefully next week we’ll be there.”, said the #5 car driver.

While the before-mentioned retirement of Felipe Massa was a setback for one Williams-Mercedes, the second team car for Valtteri Bottas more than salvaged their overall showing at the Canadian Grand Prix. The first podium of the season for the Williams Martini Racing team, Bottas repeated his 2015 appearance with a third place finish. "I’m very happy with what we achieved as a team today. It’s a shame with what happened to Felipe, but this gives us a big motivation boost for the next few races. I think today shows that we are a strong team who can deliver good results." said the Finnish driver in post-race.

Since the Spanish Grand Prix, Nico Rosberg's point lead has dwindled from 43 to just 9 markers. Struggles to capture points for one Mercedes AMG driver has come to the benefit of the other team pilot Lewis Hamilton as he is has captured two straight races. The next Formula 1 event is the European Grand Prix functioning as the inaugural occasion the series will run on the Baku City Circuit in the country of Azerbaijan. Teams will only have a week to prepare for the all-new event with the race scheduled on Sunday, June 19th.

2016 Formula 1
Canadian Grand Prix
Race Results

Pos # Car # Driver Team Engine

1 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
2 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari Ferrari
3 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
4 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull TAG Heuer
5 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
6 7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari Ferrari
7 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull TAG Heuer
8 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India Mercedes-Benz
9 55 Carlos Sainz Jr Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
10 11 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes-Benz
11 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren Honda
12 26 Daniil Kvyat Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
13 9 Esteban Gutierrez Haas F1 Team Ferrari
14 8 Romain Grosjean Haas F1 Team Ferrari
15 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber Ferrari
16 20 Kevin Magnussen Renault Renault
17 28 Pascal Wehrlein Manor Mercedes-Benz
18 12 Felipe Nasr Sauber Ferrari
19 98 Rio Haryanto Manor Mercedes-Benz
20 19 Felipe Massa Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
21 22 Jenson Button McLaren Honda
22 30 Jolyon Palmer Renault Renault

Lewis Hamilton Claims Top Spot for Sunday`s Canadian Grand Prix

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

The first of three visits to the North American continent in the 2016 Formula 1 season, the Canadian Grand Prix has been a mainstay event for all but two years since 1978 at Circuit Gilles Villeneueve. Racing on the on 4.361-kilometer, 14-turn track on a man-made island positioned just off from the city of Montreal, the track is known for stretches that allows a car to run up to 330 kilometers per hour combined with sharp, low-speed turns. Braking is generally a concern for drivers and teams as they both seek to optimize their on-track performance but also maintain enough stopping power throughout an event.

As typical for the 2016 season, the Mercedes AMG team cars proved immediately quick in practice. After having their team's 11-race pole-scoring streak snapped by a Red Bull-Tag Heuer of Daniel Ricciardo at the Monaco Grand Prix, Mercedes AMG team was seeking to come back with a vengeance in qualifying in Canada. Nico Rosberg topped Q1 while Lewis Hamilton stood fastest after the Q2 session. For the final Q3 timed laps, Lewis Hamilton prevailed to take pole setting a top time of 1-minute, 12.812-second around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Lewis Hamilton's fourth pole of 2016 comes at the track he scored his first grand prix victory in 2007. Crediting his late braking technique as a key to success on Canadian Grand Prix weekends, Hamilton has also noted the fans and atmosphere as a perk to visiting the venue.

For what proved to be a tight qualifying session at the end, Nico Rosberg guaranteed an all-Mercedes AMG team front row. Rosberg`s lap time was only 0.062 seconds slower than his teammate. Entering the Canadian Grand Prix with a 24-point lead on Hamilton, Nico Rosberg`s momentum has been disrupted in the last two races consisting of a coming-together with with his fellow Mercedes AMG driver at the Spanish Grand Prix and a seventh place on the streets in Monaco. While Lewis Hamilton has won a total of four times on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve during Formula 1 competition, Rosberg is searching for his first win in the event.

Third on the grid for the Canadian Grand Prix, Sebastian Vettel`s Ferrari wound up fairly close to the Mercedes AMG on pace. Vettel`s Q3 time was 0.178 seconds slower than Hamilton his a track Vettel claimed victory on in 2013. Starting the year with momentum, victory lane has still eluded Scederia Ferrari for 2016 in Formula 1. After six races, Vettel`s championship ranking is actually one point behind his teammate Kimi Raikkonen will start seventh for Sunday`s main event.

As the 2016 Formula 1 season trekked into the mid-season, the Red Bull Racing teams has appeared to reverse the tides that placed the team underwater through 2015. Strong results and Max Verstappen`s win has allowed the Austrian-backed effort to seriously consider a third team victory in Canada. Daniel Ricciardo is fourth place positioned just ahead of his teammate.

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA

During qualifying, the so-called 'wall of champions' located on the outside of the final corner claimed two more victims. The first was Renault`s Jolyon Palmer who brushed the green wall but escaped without any major damage. Palmer concluded to press hard but only managed to claim 17th place on the starting grid for the 2016 Canadian Grand Prix. He did manage to out-place teammate Kevin Magnussen who was sidelined from qualifying after crashing his primary race car in Saturday`s final practice.

In Q2, the second victim of the notorious Circuit Gilles Villeneuve wall was Carlos Sainz Jr. Unlike Jolyon Palmer contact, Sainz Jr`s Toro Rosso-Ferrari was not able to escape harm. Hard contact made with the right rear wheel assembly crippled the Spanish driver`s efforts that were good enough for 9th place after Q1. Instead, of a potential Q3 berth, Sainz Jr settled with a 15th place starting spot for the Canadian Grand Prix.

Following qualifying, Daniil Kvyat and Marcus Ericsson have each been demoted three positions as a penalty for on-track incidents during the Monaco Grand Prix.

Scheduled for 2 pm Eastern time, the 2016 Canadian Grand Prix for 70 laps. Weather conditions are questionable for the Sunday afternoon event as overcast conditions holds the possibility for rain falling during the race.

2016 Formula 1
Canadian Grand Prix
Starting Grid

1 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
2 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
3 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari Ferrari
4 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull TAG Heuer
5 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull TAG Heuer
6 7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari Ferrari
7 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
8 19 Felipe Massa Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
9 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India Mercedes-Benz
10 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren Honda
11 11 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes-Benz
12 22 Jenson Button McLaren Honda
13 9 Esteban Gutierrez Haas F1 Team Ferrari
14 8 Romain Grosjean Haas F1 Team Ferrari
15 55 Carlos Sainz Jr Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
16 26 Daniil Kvyat Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
17 30 Jolyon Palmer Renault Renault
18 28 Pascal Wehrlein Manor Mercedes-Benz
19 12 Felipe Nasr Sauber Ferrari
20 98 Rio Haryanto Manor Mercedes-Benz
21 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber Ferrari
22 20 Kevin Magnussen Renault Renault

#44 Scores 44th Career Pole: Hamilton Starting at Front for Canadian GP

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

For the first time in the 2015 Formula 1 season, the cars and drivers of the premier open wheel series have landed on North American soil. Completing at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on the outskirts of Montreal, Formula 1 teams ready for the 2015 Canadian Grand Prix for what is a 70-lap test consisting of fast stretches and hard braking corners.

Following the first leg of the European tour, many teams have come to realizations regarding their 2015 race packages. Teams such as Ferrari and McLaren-Honda has openly admitted to making enhancements to their power units over the time period between the Monaco Grand Prix and this week's race in Canada. In the quest to draw closer to Mercedes AMG's Silver Arrows, Saturday's qualifying would be the first full-bore test in competition to see where the refreshed race vehicles stand.

Since the start of the race weekend in Canada, more than one Mercedes-Benz powered team has been grabbing attention at the top of the time sheets. While the Mercedes AMG duo of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg has been at the top of the leaderboards through three practice sessions ahead of qualifying, there was some surprise seeing the Lotus F1 Team hovering inside the top-five. Drivers Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado appeared to be a match against the immediate teams of Ferrari, Williams and Red Bull Racing. In two sessions, Grosjean was recorded as third fastest on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. In the Q1 session leading qualifying, Romain Grosjean was able grab the top spot. With the aid of Pirelli Supersoft tires, the Lotus-Mercedes clipped-off a 1-minute, 15.833-second lap time just narrowly beating Nico Rosberg's time.

While the top of the Q1 grid showed an amusing development when time expired, the lower part of the first timed session was also striking. The only driver able to break the Mercedes AMG's winning mode in 2015, Sebastian Vettel encountered troubles with his Ferrari. An electrical problem said to have robbed Vettel of a decent run in qualifying. Out of the running in qualifying after Q1 with a 16th fastest time, Ferrari has elected to fix the power unit on Sebastian Vettel's SF15-T race car resulting in a two-position demotion on the starting grid for Sunday's main event. Slower than Vettel was the former Ferrari driver Felipe Massa. Driving Williams-Mercedes, Massa also dealt with a loss of power in preventing him from advancing beyond Q1.

Following Q1 at the 2015 Canadian Grand Prix, the Mercedes AMG decided to take a more affirmative role in Saturday's time trials. Lewis Hamilton came to life and charged to top times in Q2 as well as the final Q3 session to grab pole on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Lapping the track with a 1-minute, 14.393-second effort, Hamilton secured his 44th career pole position in Formula 1 (matching his current car number). Hamilton's Mercedes AMG was 0.309 seconds faster than the car of teammate Nico Rosberg. Last year, the Canadian Grand Prix proved to be an Achilles heel to Mercedes AMG. Issues with the hybrid powertrain took Lewis Hamilton out of the event while Nico Rosberg experienced similar problems but salvaged a second-place finish.

In contrast to Sebastian Vettel's problems with his Ferrari, Kimi Raikkonen delivered his strongest qualifying effort in a long time. Starting third, the 2007 Formula 1 World Champion has been enjoying an improved 2015 season with Ferrari after Raikkonen's miserable 2014 return to the team. Joining Raikkonen on the second row for the Canadian Grand Prix is Valtteri Bottas's Williams-Mercedes. In the previous two events on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Bottas has qualified third and fourth. 

The third row for the 2015 Canadian Grand Prix will consist of both Lotus F1 Team vehicles. Romain Grosjean found the edge over Pastor Maldonado for the inside grid position. While a victory for the Lotus F1 Team may be a longshot on Sunday, Mercedes-Benz power and an improved race car for 2015 could lead to the potential that the team could again compete for podiums. Never in the Canadian Grand Prix's history under Formula 1 has a Lotus team vehicle won. 

Also of note, Max Verstappen qualified 12th for the Canadian Grand Prix but will be starting Sunday's race at the back-end of the field. After incurring a grid position penalty after a ruling made following the Monaco Grand Prix, Verstappen's Toro Rosso team was penalized an addition 10 grid positions for installing a new Renault powerplant in his race car. Additionally to a 20th place starting spot (the deepest position possible for the 2015 Canadian Grand Prix, Verstappen will also have to spend 10 seconds in the pits during Sunday's race.

The 2015 Canadian Grand Prix will start at 2pm local time in the Eastern time zone.

 

 

2015 Formula 1

Canadian Grand Prix

Starting Grid

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
3	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
5	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Mercedes-Benz
6	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Mercedes-Benz
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
8	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull	Renault
9	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
10	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
11	55	Carlos Sainz Jr	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
12	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	Ferrari
13	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	Honda
14	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	Ferrari
15	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
16	98	Roberto Merhi	Manor Marussia	Ferrari
17	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	Ferrari
18	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Honda
19	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	Ferrari
20	33	Max Verstappen	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault

A First for Ricciardo: Red Bull Driver Wins Canadian Grand Prix

Photo Credit: Infiniti F1 Racing

Entering the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, the 2014 Formula 1 season was dominated by the Mercedes AMG team in the previous six events. Winning every grand prix before arriving in Canada, Mercedes AMG drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have paired up to accomplish a feat that proved unaccustomed to the sights of modern Formula 1 fans. The last time a single team won the first six races to start a season was in 1988 when the legendary Formula 1 pilots Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna took victory driving a McLaren-Honda for what ultimately turned out to be 11 races. Posting top speeds on Friday practice and Saturday qualifying, the Mercedes AMG cars appeared in destined to close in on the near-impossible accomplishment of 26 years ago. 70 laps around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve would be Mercedes AMG's next challenge to see if the German team could repel rivals once-again.

Completing another one-two qualifying effort for the Silver Arrows, the pole-sitting car of Nico Rosberg sat alongside Lewis Hamilton. On the start, Rosberg stormed into turn one and through the Virage Senna. However, Hamilton's launch was a little more jerky as he was forced to brake early allowing the third place-starting Red Bull-Renault of Sebastian Vettel to take the second spot.

After triumphing with their first-ever grand prix points in Monaco, the Marussia team's race in Montreal lasted for only a few corners. Drivers Max Chilton and Jules Bianchi collided with each other ending their races with severely crippled cars. The two early retirements of the Marussia cars would define the tone of the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix as Chilton and Bianchi would be the first of many vehicles not making it the full 70-lap distance around the 4.361-kilometer track on Sunday. By the end of the Canadian Grand Prix, a total of 11 cars failed to cross the start-finish line. Totaling half of the race entries, the list would also include a list of reputable race contenders.

When the race resumed on lap 7, the second Mercedes AMG car of Lewis Hamilton immediately sought to dispense of the second-place running Red Bull-Renault. On lap 10, Hamilton flew by Sebastian Vettel allowing the Silver Arrows to once-again take a customary position in the top-two spots for a 2014 grand prix race. Battles on track heated up early as the fast stretches gave the new turbocharged V-6 Formula 1 engines plenty of room to rev up to full song. The hard braking corners also provided the benefit of recharged the electrical components found in the modern Formula 1 car's powertrains. Combined with the DRS zones along the Casino Straight and the front starting stretch, the Canadian Grand Prix remained a tense but exciting challenge for drivers. The early yellow also gave teams the confidence to race without concerns to save fuel.

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

In addition to the Mercedes AMG and Red Bull Racing cars showing the way near the front of the Canadian Grand Prix field, the Williams Martini Racing team were holding their own early as Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas drove another competitive race in this 2014 Formula 1 season. Last year, the team raced in Montreal without scoring a single race point. So far in 2014, the Williams Martini Racing team had 52 points before taking to the grid at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

As the race progressed the majority of teams utilized a two-stop strategy that saw most Formula 1 runners entering the pits for the first time between laps 11 and 19. The only team gambling on a difficult pit schedule was the Force India team. With both cars qualifying outside of the top-10 on Saturday, the Mercedes-powered race machines driven by Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg addressed their pit service crews only a single time apiece. Hulkenberg was the latest one to pit after spending 41 laps on track on soft compound Pirelli tires.

Photo Credit: Pirelli Photo Service

Fielding the first and second placed cars at the halfway point of the race, Mercedes AMG was enjoying another dream weekend as the main battle on track in Montreal was between Rosberg and Hamilton. However, it was passed the midpoint of the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix where some of the first signs of vulnerability appeared amongst the Mercedes AMG race machines. During lap 36 and 37, the cars of both leader Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton experienced a loss of propulsion. While Rosberg would be able to soldier on in his car, the #44 machine of Lewis Hamilton would be retired shortly after it started trailing smoke. The problem later attributed to the high-voltage electronic component failure among the MGU-K (Motor Generator Unit-Kinetic) of the Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 W05's energy recovery system.

In the late stage of the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix, Nico Rosberg remained in the race's lead but was hardly comfortable as contenders were breathing close-by with their carbon fiber noses. Sergio Perez was vaulted into a podium spot through a daring pit stop strategy engineered by his Force India team. Stopping only once on lap 34, Perez had second place in the running order with 10 laps to go. However, the brakes and the tires on the Force India-Mercedes were beginning to surrender to the Mexican driver. While Sergio Perez was able to keep close contact with leader Nico Rosberg, the top-5 cars were tight through the final laps. By lap 66, Daniel Ricciardo snuck by the Force India car for the second place and promptly set a course towards Rosberg with only four laps remaining. With the Mercedes AMG car apparently weakened by issues with its hybrid drive system, Ricciardo's hard charge netted a big award with two laps remaining. On lap 69, the Red Bull-Renault of Ricciardo out-powered the Mercedes AMG car in front of the front spectator's grandstands.  

The final lap of the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix consisted of a scary moment resulting from a battle for fourth place. With Sergio Perez defending track position in the last turn around Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, he was fending off a charge from the Williams-Mercedes of Felipe Massa. Along the start-finish stretch, Massa had gained a powerful run on Perez. Heading into turn one, Sergio Perez's Force India-Mercedes slightly weaved in front of the fast-approaching Williams-Mercedes. Resulting in contact, both cars of Massa and Perez were sent into the turn one barriers at high speeds. The impact was said to register up to 27Gs when Sergio Perez hit the wall. After a brief medical stay, Felipe Massa and Sergio Perez were discharged without major injuries from the crash. After the race, Formula 1 ruled that the accident was the fault of Perez and will move the Mexican driver back five places in qualifying at the next race in Austria.

Under a safety car period, Daniel Ricciardo sailed across the checkered flag to take his very first Formula 1 race win. Progressing from the Toro Rosso team last year, Ricciardo's potential was seen as worthy enough to be paired with reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel for 2014 as fellow Australian Mark Webber ventured back to sports car racing. Missing out on a podium finish in his first event with Red Bull Racing due to a fuel use issue in Australia, Ricciardo remained steady during the 2014 Formula 1 season to the point he earned the first-place and the accolades that came with hoisting the Canadian Grand Prix winner's trophy. Daniel Ricciado was all smiles at the top of the podium as the Australian national anthem rang over the Montreal track. The spectators who watched all 70 laps of the Canadian Grand Prix were resoundingly pleased with the exciting end and the crowning of the race's 2014 champion. The win was the first for Red Bull Racing this season and the first for a Renault powerplant.

Photo Credit: Pirelli Photo Service 

After leading much of the race, Nico Rosberg settled with a second-place finish. "Towards the end of the race, I tried to defend against Sergio which was fine but Daniel was too fast on the straights with much more power than I had available and he was able to get past. With so much going on, I had to ask my engineer where I finished at the end as I thought I was probably about fifth or sixth. I was so happy to hear that I was in P2!" said Rosberg regarding his late race issues. The runner-up result aided the German in building his lead in the season-long drivers' standings to 140 markers overall. Following the results of the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix, Nico Rosberg's lead is 22 points over teammate Lewis Hamilton. 

Before the Massa/Perez crash, Sebastian Vettel had raced around the Force India-Mercedes for the third and final podium spot. Vettel also narrowly missed being collected in the turn one wreck on the final lap. The defending Canadian Grand Prix winner is still trying to regain his championship form he had shown over the past fourth Formula 1 seasons. Scoring only his second podium in 2014, Vettel is currently outpaced by his Red Bull Racing teammate Daniel Ricciardo in the Drivers' standings after seven races.

Outside of the podium, some quiet but productive outings for Jensen Button, Nico Hulkenberg and Fernando Alonso allowed the trio to inherit fourth through sixth place. Unlike last year's race day disappointment after a solid qualifying effort on Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Williams driver Valtteri Bottas parlayed his qualifying success into a seventh place spot in the final running order. Jean-Eric Vergne, Kevin Magnussen and Kimi Raikkonen rounded out the top-10 in the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix.

The last race for on the 2014 Formula 1 tour is a return to Austria. A return to a track now-called the Red Bull Ring, the Austrian Grand Prix is set for June 22nd.



2014 Formula 1
Canadian Grand Prix
Race Result

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull	Renault
4	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
5	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
6	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Ferrari
7	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
8	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
9	22	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
10	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
11	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
12	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
13	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	Ferrari
14	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	Ferrari
15	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Renault
16	26	Daniil Kvyat	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
17	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
18	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	Renault
19	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Renault
20	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	Renault
21	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	Ferrari
22	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	Ferrari

Rosberg Flies the Mercedes Flag in Canadian Grand Prix Qualifying

Photo Credit: Andrew Hone/ Pirelli

Two weeks after another memorable running of the Monaco Grand Prix, the enthusiasm of the 22-car 2014 Formula 1 season has jumped over the Atlantic Ocean. The first stop in North America for 2014, the Canadian Grand Prix held on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve provides an interesting combination of long, high-speed stretches and heavy braking areas.

The 4.361-kilometer track's now regular June date is typically a point in the Formula 1 season where the have and have-not teams are aware of where they stand on the grid. While the historically strong but under-performing teams for 2014 such as Ferrari and McLaren will be re-evaluating their efforts for a more productive season moving forward, the Mercedes AMG team is at the top of the Formula 1 world entering the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix race weekend.

While Fernando Alonso topped the first practice session on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Friday, the Mercedes AMG race cars of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were in hot pursuit. Just 0.016 seconds off the pace of the Ferrari in the first practice, British driver Hamilton posted a 1-minute, 16.118-second to dominate Friday warm-ups. Ahead of Saturday qualifying, Hamilton bettered his own time by more than half a second in a morning session.

Lewis Hamilton parlayed his speed in practice into strong performance in Q1 and Q2 time trial sessions on Saturday. Fellow Mercedes AMG pilot Nico Rosberg kept up appearances during the first two stages of qualifying being third fastest in Q1 and second-quickest in Q2. Mercedes-Benz teams also presented some encouraging performance during Canadian Grand Prix qualifying. Kevin Magnussen posted a second-fastest time in Q1, the rookie driver wound-up 12th on the grid after a less impressive Q2 run. Magnussen's teammate and 2011 Canadian Grand Prix winner Jenson Button will start ninth in his McLaren-Mercedes. The second Mercedes-Benz customer time to showing strength on Saturday was Williams Martini Racing. Valtteri Bottas and his more experienced teammate Felipe Massa posted some strong times throughout qualifying. After Q3, Bottas is starting fourth while Massa is placed in a solid fifth place position. Last year in Canadian Grand Prix time trials, then-rookie driver Valtteri Bottas qualified third but fell quickly over the course of the grand prix. With a year of Formula 1 driving under his belt and a Williams car that his appeared better than the 2013 version, could put together a better run.

When qualifying wrapped, the factory Mercedes AMG team enjoyed the victors. However, despite holding the advantage in the conclusion of the first two qualifying sessions, Lewis Hamilton would be bested by his German teammate. Posting a 1-minute, 14.874-second lap time in Q3, Nico Rosberg captured pole. While Hamilton attempted to take the pole position in the late portion of the final time trial session, his Mercedes AMG race car was 0.079 seconds off the mark. Holding a slim four point advantage over teammate Lewis Hamilton heading into the Canadian Grand Prix, Nico Rosberg have conceivably declared full-scale war against the 2014 Formula 1 field that includes, most provocatively, his fellow Mercedes AMG driver. 

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

Taking third place in qualifying on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, the Red Bull-Renault of Sebastian Vettel broke a dominating session among Mercedes-Benz propelled cars. Over half a second off the pace of second-place Lewis Hamilton, Vettel is still searching for his first victory in the 2014 Formula 1 season and arrives at the Canadian Grand Prix as the race's defending winner. The second Red Bull Racing car will start from sixth place on the grid for Sunday's main event.

The 70-lap Canadian Grand Prix is set to start at 2:00 PM Eastern time. The weather forecast calls for a sunny, warm race.



2014 Formula 1
Canadian Grand Prix
Qualifying Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull	Renault
4	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
5	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	Mercedes-Benz
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull	Renault
7	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Ferrari
8	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
9	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
10	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Ferrari
11	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
12	22	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
13	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
14	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Renault
15	26	Daniil Kvyat	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Renault
16	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	Ferrari
17	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus	Renault
18	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	Ferrari
19	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	Ferrari
20	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	Renault
21	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	Renault
22	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	Ferrari

Dominant Performance for Vettel's First Canadian GP Win

Photo Credit: Pirelli Photo Service

Competing in his sixth full season in Formula 1, Germany's Sebastian Vettel has claimed three championships and 28 race wins heading into the 2013 Canadian Grand Prix event weekend. However, with all of the success Vettel has enjoyed in a career that has recently crossed 100 starts, he was denied victory at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. That was until this year's running of the Grand Prix of Canada.

From the pole, the 2013 edition of the race was dominated by the German Red Bull Racing driver. Sebastian Vettel utilized dry racing conditions and a solid start over the Mercedes AMG car of Lewis Hamilton to sail into an immediate lead. The #1 Red Bull-Renault conceded the lead of the race for only two pit stops quickly replacing himself at the top of the field on both occasions.

Photo credit: Pirelli Photo Service

While the polesitter of the 2013 Canadian Grand Prix circulated precisely with no immediate pressure, the top-five was very much active. After mustering a hard-fought third-fastest time in the Q3 time trial session, Valtteri Bottas found it difficult to keep his Williams-Renault at the front during race conditions. Tire degradation and a drive-through penalty for an incident with Force India's Adrian Sutil had Bottas settling for 14th place. The second Williams-Renault driven by Pastor Maldonado also suffered from a lack of grip on softer tires. Unable to find the speed of other teams, Maldonado was relegated to a 16th place finish. The Williams F1 Team still lacks a 2013 constructor point after seven completed races.

Lewis Hamilton handily operated in the second place position in the Mercedes AMG car. Though unable to catch Vettel, Hamilton would have the challenge of Fernando Alonso's Ferrari as the race progressed.

The second Red Bull Racing entry of Mark Webber had podium contending speed for much of the Canadian Grand Prix. Itching to be at least on the podium with teammate Sebastian Vettel, Webber's efforts were impeded during the midpoint of the 70-lap race. A minor collision in the infamous Circuit Gilles Villeneuve hairpin with the Caterham-Renault of Giedo van der Garde damaged the front wing of Mark Webber's Red Bull-Renault. The incident resulted in a penalty against van der Garde (who later retired from the grand prix) and Webber's car being hindered. Able to survive the race without needing to make an emergency stop to repair the damage to his race car, Mark Webber carried on to finish a distant fourth place. In a surreal development for the tough and challenging race track, only three cars would be classified as out of the Canadian Grand Prix.

After 70 laps, the checkered flag for the 2013 Canadian Grand Prix flew for the Red Bull-Renault of Sebastian Vettel. Despite finishing 14.4 seconds in the lead without a major foe forcing him to defend his position, Vettel's win was not mistake-free effort. In lap 10 and lap 52, the German make minor bobbles requiring him to hold on tightly to his Red Bull-Renault. Nonetheless, Sebastian Vettel was not to be denied his 29th career Formula 1 race win. Claiming his first career Canadian Grand Prix victory, Vettel has won 18 distinct grand prix events.





Photo Credit: Pirelli Photo Service

For second place, a fierce fight between Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso decided the order of the remaining two spots on the race's podium. Near the end, Alonso's Ferrari was fast enough to close a 10-second gap. On the late laps, it was Fernando Alonso who triumphed over the Mercedes driver. A valuable second-place honour for the Spaniard, Alonso takes second spot in the Formula 1 drivers' standings from Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen. However, with the leader of the points standing winning the Canadian Grand Prix, the deficient over Vettel grows by seven points. After the Montreal race, Sebastian Vettel at a 36-point advantage.

Despite losing second place, Hamilton was content with the third-place effort. "It would have been nice to have kept second place of course but Fernando was very quick today and it was difficult to keep him behind. I got close to taking the place back but he was just that little bit too fast." said Hamilton in post-race comments. Lewis Hamilton's finish in addition to a fifth-place result for Nico Rosberg gave the Mercedes GP team a solid third place in the constructers' points standing closing to within 11 points to Ferrari.





Photo Credit: Pirelli Photo Service

While rookie Bottas suffered a massive backslide through the course of the Canadian Grand Prix, the veterans were able to thrust their way into the top-10 finishers. Having topped the leaderboard in a wet practice session on Friday, the Force India-Mercedes of Paul di Resta climbed from a lackluster qualifying effort of 17th place. Netting a seventh result, the effort for di Resta and Force India was aided greatly by a one-pit stop strategy after starting on medium compound tires. Starting 16th, the second Ferrari of Felipe Massa sealed a double-point race for the Italian team. While Red Bull Racing is pulling away in the constructors' points, Alonso and Massa scoring points minimized Ferrari's loss to five markers.   

It was a disappointing outing for the McLaren-Mercedes race cars. The winning team of the previous three Canadian Grand Prix events, McLaren's Sergio Perez and Jenson Button was no where near the race contender of earlier years. In fact, with an 11th place finish for Perez and a 12th place result for Button, the McLaren-Mercedes cars were unable to score a single point. Heading to Silverstone, McLaren will want to greatly remove their fortunes in front of what is considered a hometown crowd for the 50-year old motorsport organization.

Set for June 30th, the British Grand Prix comes with a brief recovery period for drivers and a window for car development for teams.


2013 Formula 1
Canadian Grand Prix
Race Results

Pos #	Car #	Driver	Team	Engine
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull	Renault
2	3	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Ferrari
3	10	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
4	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull	Renault
5	9	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes AMG	Mercedes-Benz
6	18	Jean-Eric Vergne	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Ferrari
7	14	Paul di Resta	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
8	4	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	Ferrari
9	7	Kimi Raikkonen	Lotus	Renault
10	15	Adrian Sutil	Force India	Mercedes-Benz
11	6	Sergio Perez	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
12	5	Jenson Button	McLaren	Mercedes-Benz
13	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus	Renault
14	17	Valtteri Bottas	Williams F1	Renault
15	19	Daniel Ricciardo	Scuderia Toro Rosso	Ferrari
16	16	Pastor Maldonado	Williams F1	Renault
17	22	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	Cosworth
18	20	Charles Pic	Caterham	Renault
19	23	Max Chilton	Marussia	Cosworth
20	12	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	Ferrari
21	11	Nico Hulkenberg	Sauber	Ferrari
22	21	Giedo van der Garde	Caterham	Renault