2026 Canadian Grand Prix: Russell Almost Stopped Kimi, Then His Mercedes Stopped Him

After a break, when I literally had nothing to do on the weekends, finally F1 was back again. The Canadian Grand Prix – and oh my oh my, what a race. See, this is exactly why I wait for F1 weekends.

The fun had already started during the Sprint. Russell won, Kimi called him “very naughty” after their little clash, and Toto told Kimi to concentrate on driving instead of “radio moaning.” I couldn’t stop laughing. I could just imagine Toto sitting there thinking, boys please don’t destroy my cars before the main race.

Then Sunday arrived and even the weather couldn’t decide what it wanted to do. McLaren started both cars on intermediate tyres, while Piastri was already telling them it was a mistake during the formation lap. And yes Oscar, you were absolutely right. Lando made an amazing start, took the lead and then had to pit almost immediately for dry tyres. Like, what was the point of that beautiful start now?

Once McLaren disappeared from the front, Russell and Kimi gave me the fight I was waiting for. They exchanged the lead, locked up, ran wide and kept attacking each other. Russell wasn’t letting Kimi run away this time, and I was fully enjoying it. Then his Mercedes suddenly lost power on Lap 30. Noooo… not like this. Russell had won the Sprint, taken pole and was leading the race, only for the car to give up. Watching him hit the car in frustration was painful because I was feeling frustrated with him.

Kimi went on to win his fourth race in a row. Of course, Russell’s retirement made things easier, but four wins in a row are not luck. Kimi came into Formula 1 as a rookie and now seems to be teaching everyone else how to do it. Still, I really wanted to know who would have won if Russell’s car had survived.

And then there was Max. Russell’s retirement moved my favourite into second and suddenly I was sitting properly in my chair, thinking come on Max, bring this home. But Hamilton came back and passed him around the outside late in the race. What a move… I loved it and hated it at the same time. Max still finished third and finally reached the podium for the first time this season, so yes, I was happy to see him back where he belongs.

McLaren left Canada without a single point after Norris retired and Piastri hit Albon. Their Sunday started with the wrong weather prediction and just kept getting worse from there.

I rate the 2026 Canadian Grand Prix a solid A2W 8.5/10.

Kimi took the trophy, but Russell’s unfinished race is the part that stayed with me.

aKi Malik