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ROUND 9 · CIRCUIT GILLES VILLENEUVE · 25 JUNE 2006

2006 CANADIAN GRAND PRIX

The 2006 Canadian Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada 2006 ) was a Formula One motor race held on 25 June 2006 at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal , Quebec , Canada . It was the ninth race of the 2006 Formula One season .

Winner

Alonso

Renault

Podium

Schumacher / Räikkönen

P2 and P3

Pole Position

Alonso

Qualified fastest

Circuit

Circuit Gilles Villeneuve

25 June 2006

Friday drivers

The bottom 6 teams in the 2005 Constructors' Championship and Super Aguri were entitled to run a third car in free practice on Friday. These drivers drove on Friday but did not compete in qualifying or the race.

Race

The first lap was marked by Midland cars colliding in a tight hairpin, Albers dropped out of the race and Monteiro had to go to the pits to repair the damage. In the second lap, Montoya, who was much faster than Rosberg, attacked the German at every corner trying to pass. However, this struggle ended in a crash at the start of lap 2, which led to Rosberg retiring and Montoya still trying to stay in the race for some time after the pit stop, but eventually retired on lap 14. Schumacher was stuck ... Starting from the first lap, in the first segment of the distance, Räikkönen actively attacked Alonso in front, and nevertheless outlasted him on the track, going to a pit stop a lap later. Thanks to this, Raikkonen could win the race, but during a pit stop there were problems with the rear right wheel, and the Finn returned to the track, losing 5 seconds to Alonso. Indeed, the second round of stops would prove even more disastrous for Räikkönen, as he not only spun on his in-lap, but had an ant... With just a handful of laps left the safety car was out for a second time, as home-town hero Jacques Villeneuve crashed into the wall due to brake failure. This was Villeneuve's last F1 start at the circuit named after his father. Finally, after the appearance of the safety car on lap 60, Michael Schumacher in third was able to close on Räikkonen and overtake him on lap 69 due to the latter's error. Alonso took his sixth win of the season and extended his championship lead over Michael Schumacher, who finished second. Räikkönen finished in third place and completed the McLaren team on the podium. Alonso now had six wins and three second places from the first nine races. Michelin scored their 100th win as a tyre supplier.

External links

39°47′42″N 86°14′05″W / 39.79500°N 86.23472°W / 39.79500; -86.23472

Race Result

Pos.No.DriverConstructorLapsTime/Retired
11Fernando AlonsoRenault701:34:37.308
25Michael SchumacherFerrari70+2.111
33Kimi RäikkönenMcLaren-Mercedes70+8.813
42Giancarlo FisichellaRenault70+15.679
56Felipe MassaFerrari70+25.172
68Jarno TrulliToyota69+1 lap
716Nick HeidfeldBMW Sauber69+1 lap
814David CoulthardRed Bull-Ferrari69+1 lap
912Jenson ButtonHonda69+1 lap
1021Scott SpeedToro Rosso-Cosworth69+1 lap

Qualifying

Pos.No.DriverConstructorQ1Q2
11Fernando AlonsoRenault1:15.3501:14.726
22Giancarlo FisichellaRenault1:15.9171:15.295
33Kimi RäikkönenMcLaren-Mercedes1:15.3761:15.273
48Jarno TrulliToyota1:16.4551:15.506
55Michael SchumacherFerrari1:15.7161:15.139
610Nico RosbergWilliams-Cosworth1:16.4041:15.269
74Juan Pablo MontoyaMcLaren-Mercedes1:16.2511:15.253
812Jenson ButtonHonda1:16.5941:15.814
911Rubens BarrichelloHonda1:16.7351:15.601
106Felipe MassaFerrari1:16.2591:15.555

The Paddock Breakdown

Barry · Gary · Kat

Barry — 58 · Watching since Senna

Didn't anyone bother to ask *why* Fisichella felt the need to adjust his trajectory so aggressively at the drop of the flag? A seasoned driver, yes, but the subtle hesitation, the almost imperceptible shift – it spoke volumes about the Renault strategy team's confidence, or perhaps, their lack thereof. Super Aguri, predictably, remained a footnote, their Friday experiment yielding nothing but data. The air in Montreal always carries a particular tension, doesn't it? A silent acknowledgement of the battles fought, and yet to come, beyond the visible track. Räikkönen, as always, capitalized, demonstrating a ruthless efficiency. The Canadian Grand Prix, a chess match played at breathtaking speed.

Let's be brutally clear: the entire Renault strategy at Gilles Villeneuve was a calculated gamble—a desperate attempt to bleed every last drop of data from Räikkönen's aggressive style. The Italian's premature braking, you see, wasn't a mistake, but a precisely orchestrated probe, revealing a chink in the young Finn's armor that would haunt the rest of the season.

Gary — 33 · Three Fantasy F1 leagues

Let's cut through the noise. Fisichella's initial surge wasn't merely braking; the BMW Sauber C9's revised E4 engine, boasting a peak 780bhp at the track, exhibited a disconcerting transient response – a brief power stumble that caught him off guard, allowing Räikkönen to seize the immediate advantage. McLaren, predictably, was studying the data, attempting to quantify the subtle shift in torque delivery at 6000rpm, a critical battleground for tire management. Honda, meanwhile, remained frustratingly tight-lipped about the engine's dyno figures, a deliberate obfuscation that speaks volumes about their strategic calculations.

Let's dissect this. The flickering lights, a familiar dance of anticipation… and a predictable chaos. Fisichella's premature surge, a ghost of a tactic, immediately ceded the lead to Räikkönen. Observe the pattern: Renault, consistently reliant on strategic braking, a weakness McLaren has been meticulously exploiting this season – a statistical divergence already apparent. Seven points separating the top two teams at the start, a chasm that will, I suspect, widen considerably before the checkered flag.

Kat — 30 · Technical journalist

"The air in the garage is thicker than the Montreal humidity – and for good reason. SuperAguri's Sutil is practically vibrating with suppressed fury; the team's technical director, Ben Cosgrove, is attempting to soothe him with lukewarm assurances about "learning opportunities. " Don't be fooled. The data from Friday's session – deliberately manipulated, I suspect – isn't about a simple miscalculation. It's a calculated provocation, a signal to McLaren that they're willing to push the envelope, to bleed out any remaining advantage. The whispers are already circling – a potential engine swap, a subtle shift in contractual obligations. This isn't just about a rookie's mistake; it's a declaration of war. ".

The rain, of course, always complicates things. Fisichella, perpetually simmering with a quiet frustration – you could practically taste it radiating from the cockpit – was already muttering about the "idiotic lights" as Räikkönen surged ahead. Super Aguri's Sakharov, bless his heart, was diligently scribbling notes, seemingly oblivious to the chaos unfolding. It's a curious thing, isn't it? The pressure on those Friday drivers, a constant reminder of the teams' precarious positions. Räikkönen, ever the pragmatist, was simply maximizing the opportunity, a calculated aggression honed by those relentless winter testing sessions. Rumor has it, Renault's technical director, Flavio Briatore, was privately conceding Räikkönen's superior car was proving a significant advantage.

Race Calendar

2006 season