Canadian Grand Prix: Qualifying Recap

Hulkenberg exited qualifying after the opening session, utilizing two sets of Pirelli P Zero Red soft tires. The German banked a 1:14.101 on his first run before improving on his final lap with a fastest time of 1:13.978 to classify P19.

Magnussen successfully navigated his VF-24 through Q1 also on two sets of the red compound. A time of 1:14.071 was improved on his second run, securing a 1:13.217 to progress to Q2 in P13.

Rain peppered the track for the start of Q2, hence Magnussen left the garage promptly on a new set of softs, recording a lap of 1:12.916. The rain however didn’t persist, and the Dane missed out on extending his afternoon session, not being able to better his time on a used set of the red rubber.

Mercedes’ George Russell secured pole position with a time of 1:12.000 ahead of Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen, who later set an identical lap time, with McLaren’s Lando Norris in third.



Nico Hulkenberg:

“I think we went out a bit late, we changed the rear wing going into qualifying because I haven’t been happy with the car all weekend and I had a problem with the rear wing where it wasn’t performing as it should, so we decided to change it before qualifying. That meant our entire run plan got out of sequence a bit, so we were on the back foot with timings, and it got busy and hectic. Towards the end I also had someone impeding, parked at the last chicane, so all together it made it a bit difficult.”

Kevin Magnussen:

“There was no traffic for me today which was nice. I think we thought the rain was going to come in Q2, so we went out on a new set at the beginning, which meant if the rain didn’t come, that wasn’t going to be great as with track evolution, you wouldn’t have your new tires for the end. Unfortunately, that rain didn’t come, so the lap I did on my first run was a really good lap, so given the tire choices we made, I think it was the best we could do. I’m slightly optimistic, the long run pace looked decent, albeit it was in the dry, so let’s see what the weather does tomorrow, we should be in contention no matter what.”

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal:

“Ahead of qualifying, we made changes to Nico’s car as he was struggling with car behavior throughout the weekend. The changes we made were positive, but we were a bit late getting out in Q1 because of the work we did. That pushed his run program back a little bit, which meant his tire preparation was compromised. I feel like this weekend Nico has been on the back foot and the changes we made to the car were a bit late, and that pushed into Q1 when he was under pressure, so he really couldn’t show the potential.

“Kevin’s done a great job through the free practice sessions. In Q1 he did a good job as well, so I felt like he had a very good chance of getting into Q3, but unfortunately at the start of Q2 we got the weather forecast wrong. We put the new tire on straightaway, but you can see other people had a better understanding of the forecast and some of our direct competitors went out on the used tire, and then put the new set on at the end. With track evolution, that put us on the back foot. If we had done the correct tire strategy with Kevin in Q2, I believe he could’ve been in Q3. I’m disappointed again that we couldn’t maximize Kevin’s potential as he’s done almost everything right this weekend, but we couldn’t show it in Quali. He’s got speed, so tomorrow I hope there are some opportunities to maximize that and get him into the points.” 

Today's Data:

Event: Qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix – Saturday June 8
Location: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal
Layout: 4.361-kilometer (2.710-mile), 14-turn street circuit
Weather: Cloudy
Air Temps: 20.2 degrees Celsius (68.4 degrees Fahrenheit)
Track Temps: 32 degrees Celsius (89.6 degrees Fahrenheit)
Team Result: Kevin Magnussen qualified 14th, Nico Hulkenberg qualified 19th

Free Practice 3 (FP3) Rundown:

Magnussen: 11th overall (1:13.439), 30 laps 
Hulkenberg: 17th overall (1:13.777), 27 laps 
Fastest: Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes (1:12.549)

Q1 Qualifying: 18-mins with all Drivers – Top 15 Advance to Q2

Magnussen: 13th overall (1:13.217) – Advanced to Q2
Hulkenberg: 19th overall (1:13.978)
Fastest: Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing (1:12.360)

Q2 Qualifying: 15-mins – Top 10 Advance to Q3

Magnussen: 14th overall (1:12.916) 
Fastest: George Russell of Mercedes (1:11.742)

Q3 Qualifying: 12-mins – Top 10 Drivers

Pole Winner: George Russell of Mercedes (1:12.000)