The Canadian Grand Prix was expected to be a three-horse race but it was George Russell who took a surprising pole position in Montreal.
The British Mercedes driver finished the final qualifying session with exactly the same time as Red Bull star Max Verstappen.
However, as a result of setting his time first, George Russell will start from the front of the grid on Sunday.
Mercedes have looked faster at the Canadian Grand Prix and Damon Hill sent a message to Russell on social media after his pole position lap.
It was one of a number of surprising results on Saturday and with six of the last seven races won from pole position, Russell will hope he can double his wins tally in Montreal.
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Damon Hill sends message to George Russell after Canadian Grand Prix pole position
The final session of qualifying started with several of the key players absent from the top ten shootout.
After signing his new contract with Red Bull, Sergio Perez once again failed to get out of Q1.
The Mexican driver could only qualify 16 with his teammate starting on the front row leaving Red Bull at a tactical disadvantage.
The shock of Q2 was both Ferrari drivers failing to avoid being eliminated.
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz will line up alongside each other on the 6 row of the grid as Ferrari failed to have a driver in the final session of qualifying for the first time since the Belgian Grand Prix in 2021.
The standout performer from that weekend was George Russell, who in torrential rain delivered a front-row start for Williams when they were arguably the slowest team on the grid.
Russell was once again the standout driver in Canada as he set the joint-fastest time in Q3 to take the second pole position of his career.
He’s only won once in his 112 Grand Prix starts but will hope if he gets the better of Verstappen off the line on Sunday that he can deliver Mercedes some much-needed points.
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George Russell on pole position at the Canadian Grand Prix
Posting on Instagram after qualifying, Damon Hill sent Russell a message after his brilliant performance.
The 1996 world champion was just as surprised as many other F1 fans and said: “Now that’s a bit of a turn up.”
Russell has had the edge over teammate Lewis Hamilton for much of the season and that was the case again in Canada.
Despite Hamilton looking quick during practice, he finished just under three-tenths behind Russell.
Given how close the grid is this season, that landed Hamilton 7 in the final standings, giving him work to do to score substantial points on Sunday.
Russell’s future is confirmed for 2025 with Hamilton leaving to join Ferrari but then faces an uphill battle to stay with the team he’s been a part of since he was a junior driver.
Kimi Antonelli is expected to be his teammate heading into next season.
However, the pair could be competing for one seat in 2026 with Toto Wolff desperate to sign Max Verstappen from Red Bull.
Performances like yesterday in Montreal will do Russell’s future chances no harm at all, but all eyes are on whether he can convert it into his second F1 win.
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