Russell heartbreak, McLaren misery as Antonelli wins in Canada

The Italian endured a tense 30-lap battle with Mercedes teammate George Russell for the lead, with the pair exchanging positions multiple times in one of the most entertaining battles for the lead in recent memory, before disaster struck Russell.

The Briton pulled off the circuit in a plume of smoke while attempting to keep his teammate behind him, retiring on Lap 30 and bringing an abrupt end to a thrilling duel that had kept fans on edge throughout the opening half of the race.

From there, Antonelli was never challenged, eventually finishing 10.7s clear of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, while Max Verstappen claimed third to secure his first podium finish of the 2026 season.

Russell wasn’t the only driver to endure a nightmare afternoon, with McLaren suffering a disastrous race in Montreal.

After gambling on intermediate tyres at the start, both Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris immediately found themselves on the back foot.

Piastri eventually finished 11th after receiving a mid-race penalty for a collision with Alex Albon, while Norris failed to finish after retiring on Lap 40.

McLaren’s struggles benefited Ferrari, with Hamilton and Charles Leclerc finishing second and fourth respectively, while Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar claimed fifth.

The victory extends Antonelli’s lead in the drivers’ championship to 43 points over Russell, while Leclerc now sits just two points behind the Briton in the standings.

Antonelli said he was delighted to take the win and had enjoyed the early battle with his teammate.

“It was a really fun battle to be fair with George. We were pretty much on the limit,” he said.

“It was not easy today with the wind. Very gusty. Turn 10 was very difficult. One lap we locked up and then I went in front and then I locked up.

“So it was very close and it was a shame for him to have the failure because it would have been a very cool battle.

“But, yeah, I mean, we take it. Another win and I’m very happy. Massive thanks, of course, to the team.”

The Italian said he was able to manage the race after the retirement of his teammate despite suffering tyre graining, as he became the first non-polesitter to win a race in 2026.

“When I was on my own, I was trying to really manage the tyres because I started to have some graining on the front left, and it was just a weird feeling that I was not really liking,” he said.

“At the end we had a good pace once the temperature was coming in and, yeah, now looking forward to the next one.”

Antonelli added he was hopeful he could maintain his form, which saw him become only the second Italian driver to win four consecutive races and the first since Alberto Ascari in 1953.

“Keep doing what I’m doing,” he said when asked how he would maintain his form.

“Of course we’re going to keep raising that bar because George was extremely quick this weekend. We were really neck to neck. I just need to keep levelling up.

“Of course the Ferrari and Red Bull and McLaren there, they’re definitely coming back.

“So, yeah, we got to keep pushing. Next one, Monaco, which could be a tricky one. But we’ll try to be ready for anything.

“And I’ll do my best.”

A delighted Hamilton said he was thrilled to take second, his highest finish for Ferrari since joining the team in 2025.

“Firstly I have to say a huge thank you to my team here. These guys have welcomed me with open arms and it has been pretty tough for the past year and a bit,” he said.

“So to finally find our sweet spot and have a good weekend, it’s an amazing feeling to be back up here. Especially with these guys being so quick.

“And I actually got to have a race with Max which is great.

“I’m so happy. I love this track. I can’t wait to come back.”

He added the pace had been encouraging for the team all weekend and hoped it would continue into the coming races.

“I think it’s definitely encouraging given that this weekend, you look at Mercedes brought a big upgrade. A lot of people brought upgrades here,” Hamilton added.

“We brought our big one in Miami. And the team are working really hard back in the factory.

“We got hopefully some other bits coming along the way. And considering this is a real straight line street circuit, and we just managed to hold on and get this result, that definitely gives me high hopes for what’s ahead.

“But we got to keep pushing and keep trying to extract more.”

Verstappen too said he was happy with his result, which gave him his first podium since the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2025.

“I had some cool battles out there. Racing back up front is always better right?” he said.

“And for us to have our first podium is really positive. Very happy with that.

“Cool battle with Lewis as well at the end. So, yeah, we just kept pushing to the line.

“And in a weekend where it’s not that easy to get things right, for us to be on the podium in here is extremely positive.

“So should be very happy with that.”

He added that there was still work to do to close the gap to the teams ahead in the coming races.

“Keep working and improving better than the competition,” Verstappen said.

“That’s the target. We’ll see over the coming races what we can do.”

The race began in damp conditions under light rain, with track temperatures sitting at a chilly 13 degrees, and McLaren weren’t the only team willing to gamble on intermediate tyres. Both Audis, the two Cadillacs and the Williams of Carlos Sainz also rolled the dice on the green-walled rubber.

The start itself was chaotic before the race had even begun.

Arvid Lindblad stalled on the grid ahead of the original start, forcing an additional formation lap, before a third was ultimately required as marshals were unable to clear the stranded Racing Bulls machine in time. The British driver became the race’s first retirement before a racing lap had even been completed.

Piastri was vocal over team radio throughout the delayed start procedure, repeatedly questioning McLaren’s decision to remain on intermediates and branding the call a “mistake”, though the team instructed him to stay out rather than pit for slick tyres.

When the race finally got underway, Norris launched brilliantly from third to snatch the lead into Turn 1, while Mercedes once again endured a sluggish getaway. Antonelli was at least able to capitalise, jumping ahead of teammate George Russell for second.

 

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Piastri, meanwhile, endured a poor launch of his own, dropping behind Hamilton in an almost identical repeat of Saturday’s sprint race, leaving the Australian vulnerable to Verstappen behind in sixth.

Norris led by just 0.6s at the end of the opening lap as McLaren’s gamble on intermediate tyres quickly unravelled. Piastri immediately dived into the pits for medium slicks at the end of Lap 1, with Norris following a lap later, the stops dropping the McLaren pair to 17th and 14th respectively.

That handed control of the race to Mercedes, with Antonelli initially holding the advantage over Russell through the opening laps before the Briton swept around the outside of his teammate on the back straight on Lap 6 to reclaim the lead.

Antonelli narrowly avoided contact in the process, locking up heavily as he attempted to fight back into the final chicane.

Behind them, Verstappen moved into third three laps later with a move on Hamilton into Turn 3, as the Ferrari driver complained over team radio about a lack of power. The leading quartet quickly broke clear, with Russell holding a slender 1.1s advantage over Antonelli after 12 laps.

It was at that point that the battle between the Mercedes teammates truly came alive.

Antonelli made his first serious attempt for the lead on Lap 12 after Russell locked up and ran wide at the hairpin. Although the Italian briefly edged ahead, Russell reclaimed the position down the back straight before again fending off another challenge into Turn 1 a lap later.

As Antonelli continued to pressure Russell, Piastri’s race continued to fall apart.

Attempting to pass Oliver Bearman’s Haas, the Australian locked up and was unable to avoid contact with the Williams of Alex Albon ahead, spearing into the side of the Thai driver and forcing him out of the race.

Piastri immediately pitted for a new front wing and was later handed a 10-second penalty for the incident, compounding a miserable afternoon for the 25-year-old.

To make matters worse, Piastri rejoined directly ahead of the battling Mercedes pair and was immediately on the verge of being lapped.

Norris’ afternoon also began to unravel soon after, with McLaren calling the Briton into the pits on Lap 15 over a suspected reliability concern. Mechanics spent several moments inspecting the MCL40 before eventually sending the reigning world champion back out onto the circuit.

At the front, the Mercedes duel intensified further.

 

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Antonelli remained glued to the rear of Russell on Lap 17 and, after another Russell lock-up into the hairpin, gained a run down the back straight. Russell only just held on into the final chicane as the pair continued their enthralling fight for the lead.

Antonelli attacked again into the final chicane on Lap 22 and Turn 1 on Lap 23, but Russell continued to defend resolutely.

Behind them, Hamilton closed to within a second of Verstappen, piling pressure on his former title rival and even briefly running off the road during one attempted move before rejoining safely.

Antonelli finally completed the move for the lead on Lap 23, surging past Russell into Turn 1 after gaining momentum in traffic behind a lapped Cadillac.

But the Italian’s advantage was short-lived. One lap later he locked up heavily into the hairpin and ran wide, handing the lead straight back to Russell.

The fight escalated immediately again through the final chicane, with the pair appearing to brush wheels as Antonelli cut through the escape road and emerged back in front, only to later hand the position back following team instructions.

Russell clung onto the lead for only a handful more corners as Antonelli continued to swarm all over the back of the Mercedes in one of the standout battles of the season.

However, the enthralling contest came to an abrupt end on Lap 30 when Russell suddenly slowed exiting Turn 8 in a plume of smoke, with the Mercedes suffering a power unit failure.

A furious Russell threw his headrest onto the track and struck the cockpit in frustration after climbing from the car as the Virtual Safety Car was deployed, handing him his first retirement since the 2024 British Grand Prix.

 

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The caution triggered a wave of pit stops, with Antonelli stopping for fresh medium tyres on Lap 31, along with the bulk of the leading runners, before racing resumed on Lap 33.

Hadjar emerged as one of the big winners of the VSC period, climbing to fourth behind Hamilton, while Leclerc ran fifth ahead of the impressive Franco Colapinto and Liam Lawson, who had surged to seventh by half distance.

Hadjar, however, found himself under immediate pressure from Leclerc on Lap 35, with the Frenchman aggressively chopping across the Ferrari on the back straight as the Monegasque driver attempted a move down the inside, forcing Leclerc to brake to avoid contact.

The pair continued their fierce battle over the following laps before Leclerc finally completed the pass into the final chicane on Lap 40. Hadjar was later handed a 10-second penalty for the earlier defensive move.

McLaren’s miserable afternoon worsened further on the same lap when Norris pulled off at the hairpin with an apparent gearbox issue, becoming the fifth retirement of the afternoon, while Fernando Alonso had earlier exited with a seat issue.

Sergio Perez joined the retirement list on Lap 43 after his front-right wheel collapsed under braking entering the pits, with the Mexican reporting an issue over team radio earlier in the lap.

Out front, Antonelli controlled the race comfortably, maintaining a 4.7s advantage over Verstappen with 25 laps remaining, while Hamilton began rapidly closing on the Red Bull in the fight for second.

That momentum was briefly halted on Lap 46 when debris near pit entry triggered another Virtual Safety Car, with the pit lane temporarily closed as marshals cleared the circuit.

The interruption proved short-lived, with green flag racing resuming one lap later.

Hamilton was able to resume his push for second, pumping his team up over the radio as he closed to within 2.5s of Verstappen with 18 laps remaining.

Another VSC was then brought out on Lap 53 for more on-track debris as Hadjar and Piastri both served their respective 10-second penalties.

Green flag racing resumed on Lap 54, producing a scary moment for Leclerc, who suffered a half-spin on the main straight but was able to continue.

Hamilton continued to pile the pressure on Verstappen for second, attempting a move down the back straight on Lap 58 before tucking back in behind the Red Bull to try again a lap later.

He finally completed the move on Lap 62 with a stunning pass around the outside of Verstappen into Turn 1, securing second place, a position he held through to the chequered flag.

Ahead of the battle behind, Antonelli cruised to his fourth victory of the season, having remained unchallenged after Russell’s retirement.

Leclerc finished fourth behind his teammate, ahead of Hadjar, who secured his best finish as a Red Bull driver despite later receiving another penalty for a yellow flag infringement.

Colapinto impressed with the best result of his F1 career in sixth, while Lawson held onto seventh after fending off a charging Pierre Gasly in the closing laps.

Sainz and Bearman rounded out the points in ninth and 10th respectively.

After a thrilling Canadian Grand Prix, Formula 1 now heads into a two-week break before the next round of the championship.

Results: Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix