Ferrari now has an unprecedented opportunity–to finally beat Mercedes.
MONTREAL, Canada—June 7th—Just when it looked as though Lewis Hamilton would begin to dominate at the Friday practice sessions at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, an accident at turn eight ruined his chances. The incident gave life to both Ferrari’s of Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel, who placed 1-2 in Friday’s second practice session. The 21-year old Scuderia rookie set the fastest time of 1:12:177, which was seven-tenths quicker than Hamilton’s best time in the morning.
The action was a prelude to Sunday’s race, The Grand Prix of Canada.
Despite his unfortunate situation, Hamilton still managed to take sixth in the session. His Mercedes teammate, Valtteri Bottas, finished in third.
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen was never in the top ten in the second session–a victim, as he was, of the famous “Wall of Champions” final corner. The Dutchman thumped the final corner after being caught off guard by teammate Pierre Gasly. Despite the mishap, Verstappen–unlike Hamilton–didn’t sustain serious damage to the rear of his car. But it’s still unknown whether he can match his race pace after finishing 13th in the final practice session.
Carlos Sainz Jr. led the best of the rest in his McLaren at three-tenths of a second off the Ferrari’s pace, while the American Haas F1 team’s Kevin Magnussen finished in fifth, three-tenths behind Sainz. Sergio Perez gave the home team, Racing Point, great position in seventh, while the two Renault’s of Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg took their best Friday practice session so far by finishing eighth and ninth, respectively.
Tenth went to home hero Lance Stroll, who needs to get good results this weekend, and this result could be the start of something good. The other Haas car, driven by Romain Grosjean, finished in disappointing 17th position.
For Ferrari, a tremendous opportunity looms. By finishing 1-2, and with Hamilton possibly having to start Sunday’s race from the back of the grid, the Prancing Horse has a chance to close in on Mercedes’ big lead. Mercedes has won every F1 race this year.
Courtesy: CTV
