Canadian Grand Prix demystified in a nutshell

Canadian Grand Prix

Only two Canadians have ever stepped onto the podium at the Canadian Grand Prix, do you know who they are? As we head into the first race in North America this year, let us take a closer look at everything you need to know about the Canadian Grand Prix. Do you know who won the first Canadian Grand Prix? Or who won it, when it was the held for the first time in Montreal? For all this information and so much more, just read on.

Circuit: Circuit Gilles-VilleneuveCircuit length: 4.361 kmNumber of corners: 14 (6 left, 8 right)DRS zones: 2Race laps: 70Race distance: 305.270 km2014 tyre compounds: Soft, Super SoftCircuit lap record: 1m 13.622s - Rubens Barrichello (2004), Ferrari

About the Circuit

Ever since it staged its first Grand Prix in 1967, Canada has had three race tracks stage the Canadian Grand Prix. It was first staged at Mosport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario and then alternated between Mosport and Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. Safety concerns forced the Grand Prix to be moved permanently to Mosport, before it switched to its current home on Île Notre-Dame in Montreal, after similar concerns were raised about the Mosport Park as well.

Since then, the track in Montreal has hosted 34 Grand Prix and is most famous for its Wall of Champions. The final corner of Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has become a premier crash site for Champions over the years, with Damon Hill, Michael Schumacher, Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel all having fallen victim to the wall in the last decade and a half.

Trivia

- The place where the track is situated is Ile Notre-Dame, which is a man-made island which hosted the 1967 World Fair and also the rowing events in the 1976 Olympic Games.

- 15 of the 34 races (44%) held in Montreal have been won from pole position.

- In the current field, Jenson Button (13) has made the most appearances on this track, whilst Fernando Alonso is second with 11 appearances; both Kimi Raikonnen and Felipe Massa have started 10 times.

- Michael Schumacher holds the record for the most wins all-time on this track with 7, while amongst active drivers, Lewis Hamilton is the only driver with three wins.

- McLaren has the most pole positions on this track (11) and it is Michael Schumacher who leads the drivers, with 6 pole positions.

- McLaren also have the most wins with 13.

- The lowest grid position from which a driver has won the race is 10th. Ligier’s Jacques Laffite holds that record after winning the 1981 Canadian Grand Prix

- Amongst the current field, Hamilton has led the most laps on this track with 163, with Vettel a close second with 157.

- Hamilton also has the most podium finishes in the current field, 4, and it is a two-way tie for second spot between Button and Alonso who both have 3.

- Seven of the last 13 races have had at least a single safety car appearance.

- The inaugural Grand Prix here was won by Gilles Villeneuve in 1978.

- 11 Canadian drivers have started the Canadian Grand Prix and the only Canadian to have won it was Gilles Villeneuve. His son Jacques is the only other Canadian to have even claimed a podium position.

- Ferrari have now gone 73 consecutive races in the points, whilst Nico Rosberg has 15 consecutive races in the points.

- With 25 consecutive classified finishes since his debut in 2013, Max Chilton will be looking to continue his record.

- Mercedes come into this race on the back of five consecutive one-two finishes, six consecutive wins and podiums.

- Should a Renault-powered car win the race, it will be the first Renault turbo victory since the 1986 Detroit Grand Prix. Similarly, if a Ferrari-powered car wins the race it’ll be the first Ferrari turbo win since the 1988 Italian Grand Prix.

- The last turbo-powered victory in Canada went to Ayrton Senna in the McLaren MP4-4 in 1988.