Norris tops final Canadian GP practice as Piastri struggles again
LANDO NORRIS (4) from United Kingdom, McLaren team at Canadian F1 Grand Prix at Gilles Villeneuve circuit in Montreal. Yannick Legare/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Lando Norris of McLaren topped the final practice for the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix on Saturday, while team-mate and championship leader Oscar Piastri continued to struggle.
Norris clocked 1 minute 11.799 seconds to beat the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc by mere 0.078s. George Russell of Mercedes completed the top three.
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Leclerc had a much better day following a catastrophic Friday, in which he missed second practice due to damage to his car caused by a crash in the first session.
Lewis Hamilton in the other Ferrari was fourth, while four-time defending champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull was fifth.
Piastri was only eighth, 0.720s behind Norris, after he clipped the wall with his right rear and caused a short red flag period. He crawled back to the pits but left lots of debris behind.
The championship leader has failed to be among the top three so far in Canada. His best result was a sixth place in second practice.
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Qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix is later on Saturday. Ahead of the race, Piastri tops the drivers' championship standings 10 points ahead of Norris.
Verstappen needs to be on his best behaviour for the next two races after he was hit with three penalty points on his license at the Spanish Grand Prix on June 1, which leaves him just one point away from a race ban.
Two of his penalty points will expire on June 30, moving him three points away from a race ban in time for the British Grand Prix on July 6.
The Dutchman was punished for causing a collision with Russell and he was also handed a 10-second penalty in the race.
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Verstappen was handed a timed penalty that dropped him to 10th and also given three points on his drivers' super-licence, taking him to a total of 11 and within one point of a ban if he commits any further misdemeanours. Fans in the capacity crowd at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve roared their approval as Russell warmed to his theme after clocking the only sub 1.11 lap of the weekend to date. "We're mates, so it's all good,' insisted Russell, despite his tense and often strained relationship with Verstappen who, in Barcelona, said 'give him some tissues' after their clash. 'But I've got a few more points on my license to play with so, yeah, let's see,' Russell said. It may have been good-natured fun, but it was also a reminder to Verstappen that he cannot risk repeating his 'red mist' aggression and a possible race ban on Sunday. Russell captured his first pole this year at the end of a thrilling session. Russell clocked a best lap in one minute and 10.899 seconds to outpace Verstappen by 0.160 seconds. 'On my steering wheel, you've got the delta, and I just saw every corner that I was just going one-tenth quicker, and I got into the last corner, and I was six-tenths off, so I knew the lap was mighty,' Russell said. 'Crossing the line and seeing we were P1 was a real surprise, but I was so chuffed with it. It was probably one of the most exhilarating laps of my life, an awesome experience in front of this amazing crowd.' Verstappen, who is third in this year's drivers' title race behind the McLaren pair Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, shook hands with Russell to congratulate him, but will harbour hopes of claiming an unprecedented fourth consecutive Canadian win. Last year, Russell led from pole for 20 laps before pitting to hand the lead to Norris for five laps until he also pitted. Verstappen then took control to win ahead of Norris with Russell coming home third. "I'm very happy with what we have achieved to be on the front row,' said Verstappen, having claimed Red Bull's 200th front row start. 'Tomorrow, we can have a solid race. We did the right thing with the tyres.' Asked about starting alongside Russell, the champion refused to comment, showing real irritation about the speculation on penalty points and bans. "I'm not talking about it anymore,' he said, having already confirmed he would not change his aggressive style. "It's a waste of time to discuss this. It's so childish and it is really annoying." Russell's sixth career pole confirmed Mercedes' potential for success at the high-speed Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. The late-session drama lifted the oft-warring pair clear of championship leader Piastri and Kimi Antonelli in the second Mercedes. Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton was fifth for Ferrari ahead of two-time champion Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin, Norris in the second McLaren and Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari. 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It was an intriguing and closely competed hour of action that suggested all of the leading four teams are in contention to take pole position in qualifying later on Saturday. Four-time champion Max Verstappen was fifth for Red Bull ahead of two-time champion Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin, Kimi Antonelli in the second Mercedes and championship leader Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren. Piastri was seven-tenths adrift of team-mate Norris, who trails him by 10 points at the top of the drivers' championship after nine of this year's 24 races and endured what he described as his "worst Friday of the season" the previous day. Carlos Sainz was ninth ahead of his Williams team-mate Alex Albon, pushing impressive rookie Isack Hadjar of RB down to 11th in front of another big crowd at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Overnight news of the FIA's decision to suspend British steward Derek Warwick was a hot topic in the paddock, along with a two-year contract extension for the Las Vegas race, ahead of the session, which began hesitantly in mild and dry conditions. The first drama arrived after 22 minutes when Piastri slapped the 'Wall of Champions'' on exit from the final chicane, suffering a punctured rear tyre. He limped to the pits, dropping debris that triggered a six-minute red-flag stoppage. After his complaints on Friday, Verstappen was still having issues with his brakes, grumbling about "lacking bite with this material" while Red Bull team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was in the pits and without a competitive lap. Norris improved to go top with 12 minutes remaining. - AFP 14 June 12:14 Russell fastest for Mercedes ahead of Norris as Verstappen struggles in second practice George Russell powered his Mercedes to the top of the times ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris in Friday's second practice for this weekend's Canadian Grand Prix. As four-time champion Max Verstappen struggled to reprise his pace-setting form for Red Bull in the opening practice session, Russell clocked a best lap in one minute and 12.123 seconds to beat Norris by 0.028 seconds. Russell's Mercedes team-mate teenage rookie Kimi Antonelli was third ahead of Williams' Alex Albon, two-time champion Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin and championship leader Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren. It was clear that McLaren were taking a measured approach to the weekend as they tested updated front wing and suspension. Carlos Sainz was seventh for Williams ahead of seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton in the sole Ferrari, after team-mate Charles Leclerc had crashed and damaged his car in first practice. Verstappen was ninth ahead of the two Red Bulls of Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar. For Russell, who started on pole last year, it was an encouraging session on a bright and clear day at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, where Ferrari are revered. It was the first time Russell had been fastest in a practice this year. "It's nice," Russell said after the session. "It might be my first time topping a leaderboard this year, 10 races in. So obviously, it's been a very positive day." The action began with a range of tyres chosen for use after the earlier session in which Leclerc had crashed and badly damaged the survival cell in his Ferrari. That required prolonged work to replace it and he was ruled out of FP2. Pressure on Ferrari All this heaped more pressure on Ferrari and Hamilton as media speculation swirled and team boss Fred Vasseur hit back at "stupid" stories that threatened to undermine their season. Russell set an early quickest lap before Stroll, the local hero, hit the wall at Turn Seven and damaged his Aston Martin's front wheels. His race engineer Gary Gannon asked him to stop and park, his session over. In improving conditions, Norris on mediums found his groove to go top before Albon and then Russell took control, the Mercedes man eight-tenths faster than his pole lap last year. Verstappen expressed his frustration at his Red Bull's handling. "The car's jumping crazy at the rear," he said, a complaint similar to one from Hamilton who reported "the rear keeps kicking out" asking his engineer for help. 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