Mercedes driver George Russell became the fourth different driver to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix this season after executing a perfect performance at the Canadian Grand Prix.

George Russell took pole position on Saturday with a magnificent lap that he admitted gave him ‘goosebumps’.

He held off Max Verstappen who started alongside him on the front row, with McLaren having their worst race weekend of the season.

Lewis Hamilton had more complaints to deal with in his Ferrari after suffering from several technical issues, but at least he finished the race.

Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris collided for the first time, with the British driver immediately taking responsibility on the team radio and coming off far worse than his teammate who extended his lead in the drivers’ championship.

For the first time this season, Mercedes were able to celebrate two drivers on the podium with Andrea Kimi Antonelli securing his first top-three finish of his Formula 1 career.

Russell drew comparisons to Niki Lauda in qualifying and while he’s unlikely to be in contention for the championship this year, he’s demonstrated that he’s among the fastest drivers on the grid with his performances throughout 2025.

Verstappen and Russell haven’t always seen eye to eye, but the four-time world champion was quick to praise his rival at the conclusion of the race in Montreal.


Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images

Max Verstappen praises George Russell’s race start at the Canadian Grand Prix

Russell, Verstappen and Antonelli were chatting in the cooldown room at the end of the Canadian Grand Prix.

It wasn’t the most eventful race, but one of the highlights shown on the screen was the race start.

Russell and Verstappen held their position, while Antonelli got the better of Piastri which ultimately earned him his first Formula 1 podium.

Talking about the race, Russell said: “The grip was quite nice out there, once you got out into the clear air.”

Verstappen replied: “You had a really good start! Once you’re just by yourself, it was really good. But when you’re following closely it’s tricky.”

Russell then asked: “Were you managing much in [turn] five?”

Verstappen responded and said: “Yeah, but you were doing that as well,” to which Russell replied, “Yeah, I didn’t go through flat once in five.”

George Russell still waiting for 2026 Formula 1 contract amid Mercedes interest

Russell technically only has 14 race weekends remaining until he’s a free agent in the F1 market.

Both Antonelli and Russell are out of contract at the end of 2025 but it’s hard to see either of them missing out on a race seat for next season.

Mercedes have shown an interest in Verstappen but it’s yet to be seen whether he will decide to try and break his Red Bull contract which runs until 2028.

Verstappen and Russell functioning in the same team together has seemed like a very unlikely prospect ever since they clashed at last season’s Qatar Grand Prix.

The pair collided again at the previous race in Spain which led to Verstappen being penalised, although his comments on Sunday suggest that their relationship isn’t as tense as expected.

However, Toto Wolff will need to decide which pairing he wants to move forward with and Antonelli is making an extremely strong case for a second year racing for the Silver Arrows.