Race Facts – Canadian Grand Prix

Learn about the history of the Canadian Grand Prix, which has been held at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal since 1978 and has delivered many memorable moments over the years.

• Circuit Gilles Villeneuve has a contract with F1 until at least 2031
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Formula 1 has a rich tradition in Canada stretching back to 1967, when the country first hosted a round of the World Championship. For the first ten years, the race was held at Mosport Park in Ontario (8 races) and Circuit Mont-Tremblant (2 races), before safety concerns saw the event move in 1978 to its current home on a man-made island in the St Lawrence river in Montreal.

Originally called the Île Notre-Dame Circuit after the island on which it is located, the track was renamed in 1982 after the tragic death of home-grown hero Gilles Villenueve, who won the inaugural 1978 race at the circuit in a Ferrari. The island on which the circuit is located also hosted the World Expo in 1967 – the most distinctive reminder of which is the Biosphere dome, now an environmental museum.  Île Notre-Dame was also the scene for rowing and canoeing events at the 1976 Montreal Olympics. Both Île Notre-Dame and neighboring St Helen’s Island are part of Parc Jean Drapeau, a recreational space which is popular year-round with locals.

From its debut in 1978 to 2019, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was absent only twice from the F1 calendar; in 1987 and in 2009 when contractual issues saw the event lose its place to Abu Dhabi. In March 2017, the organizers signed a new contract with the Formula 1 Group that will see the race remain on the calendar until at least 2029.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Canadian Grand Prix was cancelled in 2020. It was reinstated on the 2021 calendar, but travel restrictions saw the race cancelled for a second year in succession. After being forced off the calendar for two years, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve announced in April 2021 that it had extended its contract to host the Canadian Grand Prix through to 2031.

The race returned in 2022, with 338,000 fans flocking to the circuit over the Canadian Grand Prix weekend. The weekend attendance number grew by a further 7,000 in 2023 and enjoyed another record-setting year in 2024, with 350,000 fans in attendance over the 3-day weekend.

Canadian Grand Prix: Did You Know?

• Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton share the record for the greatest number of wins at Circuit Gilles Villenueve. Schumacher won seven times between 1994-2004, while Hamilton equalled his tally with victory in the 2019 race.
• Riccardo Paletti, in only his second F1 race, was killed at the start of the 1982 race when he crashed into the Ferrari of polesitter Didier Peroni, who had stalled when the race got underway. Paletti’s death came only five weeks after Gilles Villeneuve had perished during qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix and was the last death during an F1 race until Ayrton Senna at Imola in 1994.
• Jacques Villeneuve, Canada’s only Formula 1 World Champion (1997), never won the Canadian Formula 1 Grand Prix at the circuit named after his father. His best result was 2nd on debut in 1996.
• The 2001 Canadian Grand Prix was unique in that it was the first time two brothers finished 1st and 2nd in an F1 race. Ralf Schumacher won and Michael followed him home.

• Robert Kubica’s victory here in 2008 was the first, and so far only, F1 victory by a Polish driver.
• German drivers have had 24 podium finishes at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Strangely, Sebastian Vettel’s third place finish in 2014 is the only time a German has finished on the final step of the podium here.
• In 2023, Max Verstappen joined Alan Jones, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton as the fourth driver who has taken back-to-back wins at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. In 2024, he equalled Schumacher and Hamilton’s record for the most consecutive wins at the track.
• Pole position has been decided by less than a tenth of a second at five of the last ten Canadian Grands Prix. In 2024, George Russell and Max Verstappen set identical lap times for pole position, with Russell taking pole as he set his lap time first. It was the first time there had been in a dead heat in Formula 1 qualifying since the 1997 European Grand Prix, when three drivers set identical pole times.
• Just one champion has been crowned at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve since 1978. That was Alan Jones, who took the title here in 1980 when the Canadian Grand Prix was held toward the end of the season.
• In 2022, the grid slots in which the two Ferrari drivers lined up were painted red to commemorate 40 years since Gilles Villeneuve’s death. The following year, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc ran a tribute helmet to the Canadian. 

Memorable Moments at the Canadian Grand Prix

1991 Canadian Grand Prix: Mansell out of fuel

Nigel Mansell qualified in second place for the 1991 Canadian Grand Prix, and soon made light work of easing by his team-mate for the lead at the start; a position which he’d remain in for the majority of the afternoon.

Such was Mansell’s confidence, he began the final lap of the race by waving to the fans. And then, suddenly, his Williams began to slow. Just half a lap from victory, Mansell’s car ran out of fuel and ground to a halt at the hairpin. Nelson Piquet, who was 57 seconds behind Mansell before his stoppage, flew past and took the win. It was the Brazilian’s final win of his career.

1995 Canadian Grand Prix: Alesi’s only win

Jean Alesi got the best birthday present possible in 1995 as he took his first and only F1 win at the Canadian Grand Prix. The Frenchman started from fifth in his Ferrari, and overtook all in front, aside from Michael Schumacher. Then, on lap 57, Schumacher was forced to pit with electrical issues, allowing Alesi to slide by into the lead.

Alesi stayed there until the end, and emerged as the popular winner of the race. His Ferrari came to a halt on the lap back to the pits, as he was out of fuel. Schumacher collected Alesi and the Ferrari driver completed a triumphant return to the pits on the side of Schumacher’s Benetton. Watch the highlights.

2007 Canadian Grand Prix: Hamilton’s first win

The 2007 Canadian Grand Prix was one of chaos, as the Safety Car was called out four times over the course of the race. Most seriously, Robert Kubica crashed his BMW Sauber heavily at the hairpin, and was lucky to emerge largely unhurt. In the end, just twelve drivers reached the end of the race, including Takuma Sato, who pulled off an unlikely overtake in his Super Aguri on Fernando Alonso.

Throughout it all, Lewis Hamilton kept his cool to take his first F1 win on only his sixth attempt. Kubica would make up for his crash the following season, by taking victory at the track. Read More: 2007 Canadian Grand Prix: First & Eternal.

2011 Canadian Grand Prix: Button’s unlikely victory

The 2011 Canadian Grand Prix, plagued by Safety Car stints and red flag periods, is the longest Formula 1 race on record, lasting over 4 hours; and the race winner wasn’t decided until the very last minute. Heavy rain made for tricky conditions, and there was plenty of drama. Jenson Button collided with Lewis Hamilton on the main straight, putting the latter out of the race. Button then received a drive-through penalty for speeding behind the Safety Car.

When the red flag was shown due to the conditions, the McLaren driver was last on the road. Undeterred, the Brit valiantly fought back but a botched overtake on Fernando Alonso saw him pick up a puncture and he dropped to the back of the field once again.

Nothing could stop Button in the conditions which played to his strengths and, by the start of the final lap, the McLaren driver was right on the tail of Sebastian Vettel’s Red Bull. Feeling the pressure, Vettel went too wide into turn 6, allowing Button past to take one of the most remarkable victories in F1. Watch the race-winning move.

2014 Canadian Grand Prix: Ricciardo’s first win

The 2014 Canadian Grand Prix was the first of the hybrid era which Mercedes failed to win. Both of their cars ran into the same difficulties, Lewis Hamilton taking the more immediate ailments and being forced to retire with brake failure. Nico Rosberg continued, albeit slowly, as a queue of traffic began to form behind him. Daniel Ricciardo was able to move past Felipe Massa, Sergio Perez and team-mate Sebastian Vettel to hunt down Rosberg’s Mercedes.

Soon enough, Ricciardo made the move on Rosberg to lead the race. A collision on the penultimate lap between Perez and Massa brought out the Safety Car, leaving Ricciardo to lead the drivers over the line for the final time, and scoring his first F1 victory. Watch the highlights.

2019 Canadian Grand Prix: A controversial conclusion

Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton were embroiled in a race-long duel for the win at the 2019 Canadian Grand Prix. Hamilton’s day was made significantly easier when Vettel picked up a time penalty for cutting a chicane and rejoining the track in a manner that the stewards deemed to be unsafe.

Vettel crossed the finish line first but, with Hamilton less than five seconds behind the Ferrari, the win was given to the Mercedes driver. To show his displeasure in parc ferme, Vettel refused to park his car in his allocated slot and swapped the number boards in front of the cars, placing the number 1 in front of the empty space where his car should have been parked.

The Wall of Champions

The last corner at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve (turn 13) is a tricky chicane which leads on to the start-finish straight. It has become known as the Wall of Champions due to the number of F1 greats it has caught out over the years. The list of drivers to have had accidents at turn 13 includes Michael Schumacher, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve, Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel. In March 2017, it was announced that the wall would undergo modifications ahead of the next race, as it was deemed too dangerous for the new design of F1 cars.

Canadian Grand Prix Facts

Circuit Name	Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
First race	1978
Track Length	4.361km (14 turns)
Race Distance	70 laps (305.27 km)
Lap Record	1:13.078, Valtteri Bottas, (Mercedes, 2019)
2024 Result	1st Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1:45:47.927
	2nd Lando Norris (McLaren) +3.869s
	3rd George Russell (Mercedes) +4.317s