Max second in Canadian GP: 'Our aggressive strategy worked'

Published on 15 June 2025 by Stefan Meens

Max Verstappen finished second in the Canadian Grand Prix. George Russell took the victory in a race that finished under a safety car following a collision between the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Russell’s Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli finished third behind Max to claim his maiden Formula 1 podium.

“I think we maximised the result”, said Max after the race. “The first and second stint were tough on the tyres, so I didn’t expect to survive the final stint; a really great job! We were aggressive with the strategy, and I think it worked.”

The Oracle Red Bull Racing driver added: “P2 was the maximum today. It’s a long season and we’ll approach it race by race. We always try to maximise every weekend.”

Looking ahead to the team’s home race in Austria, Max concluded: “It’s always a great weekend and we’ve achieved great results. Hopefully we can put together another strong weekend.”

When the lights go out at 2pm local time at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, both front row starters Russell and Max enjoy a clean getaway, with the former maintaining the lead from pole position. They are closely followed by Antonelli who manages to pass Oscar Piastri in the run down to turn three.

In the first handful of laps, Max pushes to pass Russell, but the Mercedes driver absorbs the pressure from behind. From lap seven onwards, Max drops out of the leader’s DRS and starts to look in the mirror as Antonelli slowly catches up. In lap twelve, with the Italian firmly in Max’s DRS, the Dutchman heads to the pits for his first stop, exchanging his medium Pirellis for a fresh set of the hard compound tyre.

A lap later, Russell makes his first stop, with Antonelli making his first visit to the pits a couple of laps later. Piastri is the last of the top four to make his stop and rejoins behind Russell, Max and Antonelli. At the very front, Norris and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) have stayed out to take the lead of the race. It’s not until lap 29 when Leclerc and lap 30 when Norris pit, that Russell regains first place.

Max is the first of the front runners to come in for his second and final stop. The Dutchman does so on lap 36 and once again opts for a set of the white side-walled hard tyres. The early stop prevents Antonelli from gaining a position as Max utilises the undercut well to cement his second place.

With everyone having completed their final stops, the last dozen laps set up a close fight between the top five, who all circulate within two seconds of the car in front. Although Max manages to get as close as a second and a half to Russell, as the leaders manoeuvre through the back markers, the real fight ensues for the final spot on the podium.

Piastri is the first to attempt to overtake Antonelli but cannot get close enough to set up a decisive overtake. It allows Norris to close the gap to his teammate, ultimately culminating in contact on lap 67. On the previous lap Norris passes his McLaren teammate into the hairpin, but the Australian regains P4 on the run to the final corner. As the pair cross the start-finish straight, Norris tries to squeeze by Piastri on the run down to turn one but runs into the back of the championship leader. The former loses his front wing and destroys his  left front suspension in the process.

The incident prompts a safety car not leaving enough time to retrieve the stricken McLaren and restart the race. It means Russell secures his first win of the season, ahead of Max, Antonelli and Piastri.

Results Grand Prix Canada: