George Russell reveals how Lewis Hamilton was partly responsible for his success in Montreal

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The Canadian Grand Prix qualifying session had George Russell as the standout performer. During a dramatic finish, he secured the pole position.

Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen were the main threats to the British driver. Both had held provisional pole at different stages.

Russell then put together a blistering lap in the closing seconds, crossing the line with a time in the high 1:10s – enough to put him 0.160s clear of Verstappen and secure pole for Mercedes.

Both Russell and Verstappen set their fastest laps on medium tyres, which proved to be the better option over the softs in the final run.

It’s the Englishman’s second consecutive pole at Montreal, and speaking to TSN afterward, he credited some of his performance to lessons learned from Lewis Hamilton during their time as teammates.

George Russell learned a lot from Lewis Hamilton at Canada

Russell spent three seasons alongside Hamilton at Mercedes before the seven-time world champion moved to Ferrari at the end of 2024.

Hamilton has a remarkable record in Montreal, currently tied with Michael Schumacher for most wins at the circuit – and could make that record his own this weekend.

Reflecting on his pole position, Russell explained how Hamilton’s past success at the track gave him valuable insight.

“I learned a lot from Lewis [Hamilton] my first year I came here,” Russell said.

“He’s always been so strong – he’s the GOAT, really, the Montreal GOAT – and that helped me take it to another level here. So two poles in the last two years feels pretty special.”

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All eyes on George Russell and Max Verstappen for the start

Russell and Verstappen will share the front row at the start of Sunday’s race, just a couple of weeks after their incident during the Spanish Grand Prix.

Verstappen received a 10-second penalty and penalty points on his superlicence after a late-race collision with Russell, with stewards ruling that he failed to return a position after an earlier incident.

With just one penalty point remaining before a potential race ban, Verstappen will need to tread carefully at the start in Montreal.

Meanwhile, Russell has said he won’t shy away from being aggressive – a quality that Nico Rosberg believes gives him an edge over Lando Norris in battles against the Red Bull driver.