2026 Canadian GP Sprint Qualifying Review
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Why do Ben and Sam open the episode with a tribute to Kyle Burns?
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Hello and a very well welcome to the Late Breaking F1 podcast presented by Sam Sage and me, Ben Hawking. Finally, we have some F1 to talk about. We've got all of Spring qualifying to get into today. Very quickly, though, before we move into F1, a little bit of chat on uh on Nazca, because uh, like the rest of the motorsport community, we were shocked, saddened to learn of the passing of Kyle Burns. Bush just yesterday, um, at the age of of only forty one. Um Obviously very surprising news. Uh, even as two motorsport enthusiasts that maybe wouldn't call NASCAR our our number one love in in the motorsport world. Such a legacy that he's going to leave behind. Multiple time NASCAR Cup champion, Coca-Cola six hundred winner.
I I could be here for thirty minutes listening his accolades. He's done so much in in the world of motorsports. Um, and we just want to extend our uh our well wishes to his family, to his friends, and indeed the the wider NASCAR community is is uh Um A a le a legend. Legend of the game, no doubt about that. Down about that.
You're right. Absolutely legit. The game. He's one of those names that is synonymous with motorsport. And it was genuinely shocking to hear of his passing. It was so sudden and absolutely gutted, as is the whole motorsport community. Uh, I think the biggest tongue you can give to a driver is when you say that he was almost the biggest pain in the butt of all the other drivers on the grid because he was just that good. Um, you know, there's so many legends of NASCAR coming out now and talking about how difficult he was to go up again. And he was special in in that in that field. So really gutted, really shocked. And um thoughts with family, friends, and all those that knew him properly.
How did Mercedes’ upgrades and George Russell’s early‑season pressure shape the sprint‑qualifying outlook?
Uh it's really sad to see him go. So hopefully that can be looked into and we we find out. what that reason was, but thoughts with everyone around him.
Hundred percent. Well said. Well said. Um plenty to talk about uh with this Canadian GP sprint qualifying today, all three qualifying sessions that we'll get into. George Russell getting prov uh getting pole positioned for the sprint race tomorrow, of course. We've got a very busy weekend of action that will be here for the entire way uh on the late breaking podcast. Joined on the front row by Kimmy Antonelli. So that Mercedes dominance continues. Bit of a Noah's Ark. Going on with McLaren three four, Ferrari five six, and then Red Bull seven and eight. Um, but let's start with Mercedes, let's start with the Pole Man, George Russell. We said coming into this weekend this is uh a a pretty important one for him to to get right.
Still very early in the weekend, of course, but this feels like a a pretty big result for the person you said was maybe the most under pressure um going into the weekend.
Yeah, he was the most under pressure and arguably still is. The hard work is yet to be done, but he's put himself in the best position possible so far. It's not been smooth sailing for George Russell. He had a little bit of a bumpy ride in uh FP one, of course. He had a spin which caused himself to, you know, run off into the lucky to get away with
that. It's right by the wall, wasn't he? Um I mean he br he brushes the wall, he does contact, but like
But you know, any you know, a lot of other drivers were gonna hang a wheel off or real trouble for him. So, you know, he he picks up that bigger trouble in practice and then he goes into qualifying and the raw pace is very clearly there, but there were also some issues, right? We saw him run go through the runoff at one point. Um the speed wasn't immediately impactful in terms of the grid lineup as well. It took a couple of goes for him to really embed himself into the session. We saw Hamilton, of course, go fastest in SQ. You think that the Mercedes would be dominant. Didn't immediately look like it was going to be that way. But once it looked like Russell found his groove, especially that SQ2 time and going to the start of SQ three, it felt like he was able to just lift the car to another another level.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
Why do Ben and Sam open the episode with a tribute to Kyle Burns?
0:00–1:59
2
How did Mercedes’ upgrades and George Russell’s early‑season pressure shape the sprint‑qualifying outlook?
1:59–5:01
3
What does the analysis of Russell’s FP1 spin and SQ2 performance reveal about Mercedes’ pace?
5:01–10:28
4
Why did Kimi Antonelli’s late‑stage surge to P2 matter for the front‑row battle?
10:28–15:26
5
How are Red Bull’s qualifying struggles and Verstappen’s lap times compared to the midfield?
15:26–21:11
6
What impact did McLaren’s and Ferrari’s upgrades have on their qualifying positions?
21:11–25:26
7
How did the unexpected groundhog incident affect Albon and Lawson’s sprint‑qualifying chances?
25:26–30:13
8
What penalties and rule‑change suggestions do the hosts discuss after the red‑flag controversy?
30:13–37:15