Max Verstappen swapped F1 for the Nurburgring 24 Hours over the weekend, with the Dutchman missing out on a potential victory following a technical issue on his car.
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Canadian 2026 GP sprint preview
Top stories ahead of the Canadian sprint GP. Ranked F1 coverage since the Miami Grand Prix - upgrades, controversy, and paddock storylines that matter before the weekend - plus circuit facts, records, and this grid's history at the track.
Weekend schedule
All timezonesTimes shown in circuit-local time (GMT-4).
- FP1Fri12:30
- Sprint QualifyingFri16:30
- SprintSat12:00
- QualifyingSat16:00
- RaceSun16:00
A forecast appears here once the weekend is inside the forecast window.
The circuit
Full circuit guideCircuit Gilles Villeneuve · 4.361 km · 14 corners · clockwise
Recent form at this circuit
Last winners
- 2026Andrea Kimi Antonelli · Mercedes
- 2025George Russell · Mercedes
- 2024Max Verstappen · Red Bull
Last pole times
- 2026George Russell · 1:12.578
- 2025George Russell · 1:10.899
- 2024George Russell · 1:12.000
What makes it different
- The exit wall at the final chicane is the Wall of Champions - it caught Damon Hill, Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve, all world champions, in the same 1999 race.
- Low-grip, low-abrasion surface on an island circuit that sits unused most of the year: track evolution across a weekend here is among the largest in F1.
- The island the track sits on didn't exist until the 1960s - Île Notre-Dame was built from 15 million tonnes of rock excavated for Montreal's Metro, in time for Expo 67 in 1967.
Home race
Home race for Lance Stroll.
This grid’s history here
Lewis Hamilton7 wins · 2019, 2017, 2016, 2015, …
Max Verstappen3 wins · 2024, 2023, 2022
Andrea Kimi Antonelli1 win · 2026
George Russell1 win · 2025
Fernando Alonso1 win · 2006
Top stories ahead of the Canadian sprint GP
#2
Montreal strippers target Canadian Grand Prix F1 weekend with strikeStrippers in Montreal will strike over the F1 Canadian Grand Prix weekend.
#3
"McLaren starts very well" - why Kimi Antonelli and Mercedes must tackle F1 start problems"McLaren starts very well"
#4
Max Verstappen: “Very positive” engine changes “definitely” help me stay in F1A few days after his endurance racing adventures on the Nordschleife, Max Verstappen has returned to the Formula 1 paddock in Montreal. The Dutchman has not hidden his criticism of the current tech...
Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff has shared his thoughts ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, a weekend in which the Silver Arrows will bring their first upgrade package of the season.
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