Verstappen wins Canadian Grand Prix ahead of Sainz and Hamilton

Drivers took to the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve for the first time in three years, with Max Verstappen beating Carlos Sainz to victory.

After a wet and windy Saturday, the teams and drivers breathed a sigh of relief when the skies turned blue for Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix, with all eyes on the battle between Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso starting on the front-row.

As the lights went out, Verstappen led Alonso as the rest of the pack battled for position. On lap three, Alonso would fall behind fellow-Spaniard Carlos Sainz who set his eyes on a charging Verstappen ahead.

After a crash in Qualifying yesterday, Sergio Perez’s weekend got even worse as his transmission failed on lap nine. This brought out a virtual safety car, with Verstappen and Hamilton pitting while Sainz and Alonso continued.

On lap 20, Mick Schumacher would head off at the same corner as Perez, causing another VSC. This time, it was Sainz who pitted while teammate Charles Leclerc made his way into the top-ten.

Alonso would box on lap 29, coming out behind Esteban Ocon in a tough fight with Leclerc. However, when Leclerc pitted, he would return to the circuit in 12th. Meanwhile, Verstappen would pit once again, allowing Sainz and Hamilton to jump ahead.

Now, with Hamilton pitting again, Verstappen chased Sainz with Ferrari seemingly praying for a safety car. The race was blown wide open once the AlphaTauri of Yuki Tsunoda found himself in the wall.

With fresh hard tyres and the gap closed to nothing, a first career win for Sainz was on the cards in Canada. The race resumed with 16 laps remaining, and the battle for the win began.

The former-Toro Rosso teammates pulled away from the rest of the pack, as Sainz began to size up a move for the race lead.

As the pair traded fastest laps in the closing stages, each matching the other’s speed and tactics to gain an advantage with the clock ticking down for a move to be made, they entered the final lap separated by just half a second.

A brilliant lap from Verstappen carried him to victory for the first time in Montreal, extending his championship lead over both his teammate and Ferrari.

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