CANADIAN GP 2025: CHAOS. STRATEGY. GROUNDHOG.
A Race To Forget: Start And Opening-Lap Mayhem
When the lights went out, George Russell nailed the launch from pole and tunneled cleanly through Turn 1, hiding nerves behind deadpan focus. Closely behind him, Max Verstappen stalked like a shark, while the rest of the pack crashed into the first braking zone like it was Monaco at full speed. Classic Canadian chaos.
The midfield looked like a drop-kick compared to the front. Oscar Piastri, normally bulletproof on starts, got swarmed by Kimi Antonelli, Alexander Albon, and Nico Hülkenberg — all eager for early bragging rights. Montreal’s first lap is where tyres bleed grip, and with Pirelli medium compound universally chosen (smart move — they grip well, don’t overheat quickly), this became less tyre war and more gladiator arena .
Turn 1 sorted itself out: Russell P1, Verstappen P2, Antonelli muscled Piastri for P3, and then it got spicy. Leclerc screamed into P5 — Ferrari’s launch systems seem back on track — and Lewis, starting just ahead, found his lane and held it, avoiding midfield carnage like a zen monk navigating traffic.
Oh, but don’t think that was the end. Albon tried an audacious Williams overtake on Colapinto, hit the grass, and lost traction, allowing Hülkenberg and Isack Hadjar to dart by . That’s what Montreal does: it punishes hesitation and rewards mad bravery. Within five laps, the top six had lined up — Russell, Verstappen, Antonelli, Piastri, Leclerc, Lewis — but those are just the shark-infested waters around the real prize.
Mid-Race Showdown: Pit Strategies & On-Track Battles
Once positions stabilized, the real chess match began — pits, tyre stints, and razor-sharp passes.
Lap 12 saw Verstappen pit first from P2, eating tyre drop to undercut fast-starters behind. Russell followed instantly — Mercedes running clean, safe stops. But Ferrari fumbled timing for Leclerc and Lewis, bringing them in too late and then releasing them into traffic, turning their strategy into a mid-pack trap .
Russell, meanwhile, extended his stint, matching Verstappen’s pace and stroking McLaren-like synergy. After his second stop on Lap 42, he emerged P4 — but within sniffing distance of the top two, keeping tyre temps and aero balance tight.
Meanwhile, Norris and Piastri were running their own mini-race. Norris passed Piastri around Lap 47, but Piastri hit back by Lap 51 into the hairpin — only for Norris to retaliate so fiercely he kissed the pit wall at exit, echoing Jenson Button’s 2011 highlight reel . That contact triggered a Safety Car, bunching the top ten — and giving Ferrari a minuscule shot at recovery.
Unfortunately, none of the chaos helped Lewis. Ferrari got him out behind slower cars, and his compromised aero (more on that later) meant he just didn’t have the grunt to pass. The midfield battles behind Russell and Verstappen were including Hulkenberg vs Hadjar for P5, Leclerc vs Norris for P6 — it was full midfield theatre.
Lap 60 felt like ’90s F1 in its prime: no DRS overtakes (except on a few straights), just brake, steer, commit. Russell stuck, Verstappen timed his B-spec undercuts; Piastri triumphed for P3 after Norris hit the wall hard. Chaos? Yes. Structure? Also yes. A classic Canadian midfield thriller.
When Nature Intervenes
Now — the groundhog incident. Lap 12, just after Turn 9, Lewis zips over the kerb, and suddenly — thump. He’s braked, didn’t know what hit him, but his radio lit up:
“What was that? Am I okay?”
His engineer clipped in with safety analysis, but that spark of dread was obvious. Later, Ferrari confirmed what everyone feared: Lewis had obliterated nearly 20 points of downforce — equivalent to aero failure at 200 km/h, costing roughly 0.5s per lap in Montreal .
Lewis, a known animal-lover, was shaken:
“I feel terrible — those animals are innocent.”
Emotion aside, the damage changed his race. Without downforce, the front exit got twitchy, braking stability dropped, and his precious overtaking grip evaporated. Ferrari spent two pit stops trying to salvage balance, but every stop just dropped Lewis into traffic, where overtakes became suicide missions. By Lap 37, he radioed again:
“I’m slow. I mean, I’m really slow.”
He finished P6 — a good save, but leaves a “what if” sting .
This is greatness blocking: Lewis had the mind, the tyre strategy, and he’d gained position strongly off the grid. But wildlife — yes, wildlife — blew it all up. Montreal’s groundhog is now the sport’s unlikeliest villain.
Could Lewis Have Been Higher Without 20 Points Lost?
The final question: without groundhog aero loss, is Lewis P4? P3? On form, a P5 was his floor. Considering pace before wildlife strike, plus his mid-race management, a top-five was certain — maybe even battling Norris/Piastri. Even Russell admitted post-race he’d been watching Lewis’ sector times export fast pace.
But nature had a different script. Racing’s ecosystem isn’t perfect — it’s punctuated by randomness. Still, Ferrari and Lewis showed resilience — he managed to limp home, defended where he could, and kept pace respectable. And while the points sheet now reads “P6,” we F1 fans — especially Lewis fans — know he was robbed by fur, not failed by talent.
In another season, he’d have cleaned it up. In another moment, Piastri’s P4 might have become Lewis’s P3 with cleaner aero. That’s not speculation — that’s what this sport is: a fine balance, determined by milliseconds... and maybe occasionally by groundhogs.
Final word? Montreal was Russell’s day. Piastri looked electric. Norris earned his scars. But for Lewis, it was a reminder: even perfection can’t beat unpredictability. We’ll just have to wait for the next round and hope there’s no groundhog brigade on track. Still, hats off to keep grinding through chaos — that’s champion DNA.
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