Canadian Grand Prix 2018: What time does the race start, which TV channel is it on and what are the odds?

Lewis Hamilton at Canadian Formula One Grand Prix, qualification
Disappointment for Lewis Hamilton in qualifying - will it improve on Sunday? Credit: Getty Images

What is it?

The seventh round of the 2018 Formula One season leaves Europe again for Montreal in Canada and a circuit named after legendary Ferrari driver Gilles Villeneuve. 

When is it?

The weekend runs from June 8 until June 10. Practice runs on the Friday with qualifying on Saturday June 9 and the race on Sunday June 10. 

What time does it start?

The race on Sunday gets under way at 7.10pm BST. 

How can I watch it?

As ever, all the coverage is screened live on Sky Sports F1. Channel 4 also have highlights for the race weekend.  Qualifying coverage starts at 6pm BST on Sky Sports F1. Race coverage on Sunday begins at 5.30pm on Sky with On The Grid coverage from 6.30pm. Sky's usual suspects will be there for all the build-up, analysis and coverage over the course of the weekend: Damon Hill, Martin Brundle, Johnny Herbert, David Croft among others. 

Max Verstappen comes into Montreal on the back of a difficult season so far, and dead-batted questions about his form in the Thursday press conference Credit: GETTY IMAGES

What are the current standings?

  1. Lewis Hamilton MERCEDES - 110
  2. Sebastian Vettel FERRARI  - 96
  3. Daniel Ricciardo - RED BULL  - 72
  4.  Valtteri Bottas - MERCEDES - 68
  5.  Kimi Raikkonen - FERRARI - 60
  6. Max Verstappen - RED BULL - 35
  7.  Fernando Alonso - MCLAREN - 32
  8. Nico Hulkenberg - RENAULT - 26

What do we know about the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve?

  • Circuit length:  4.361km
  • Laps:  70
  • Race distance:  305.27km
  • Race lap record:  1.13.622 (Rubens Barrichello - Ferrari, 2004)
  • 2017 pole position: 1.11.459 (Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes)
  • 2017 winner: Lewis Hamilton
  • 2017 fastest lap:  1.14.551 - Lewis Hamilton
  • Number of corners:  14
  • Tyre compounds to be used:  Hypersoft, ultrasoft, supersoft
  • Overtaking chances:  Pretty good, overall. The best opportunities come into the very tight hairpin before the back straight, the final chicane and then the following turn one - where a good exit is critical. There are a couple of other half-decent chances too, but drivers will have to feel pretty confident to make them stick. Riding the curbs aggressively and late braking are crucial to being quick in Montreal. 

What are the odds (top ten)?

  • Lewis Hamilton - 11/8
  • Sebastian Vettel - 7/4
  • Valtteri Bottas - 13/2
  • Max Verstappen 9/1
  • Daniel Ricciardo - 10/1
  • Kimi Raikkonen - 11/1
  • Fernando Alonso - 500/1
  • Kevin Magnussen - 500/1
  • Sergio Perez - 500/1
  • Esteban Ocon - 500/1

What happened in qualifying?

Sebastian Vettel handed Ferrari their first Canadian Grand Prix pole position since Michael Schumacher in 2001 on Saturday while Formula One championship leader Lewis Hamilton qualified fourth for Mercedes.

Vettel, 14 points behind the Briton, will start from the front for the fourth time at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve after setting a track record of one minute 10.764 seconds on a sunny afternoon.

Hamilton had been hoping for a record seventh Canadian Grand Prix pole, at the track where he took his first win in 2007, but instead was out-qualified by Finnish team mate Valtteri Bottas who joined Vettel on the front row.

The top four all lapped inside the one minute 11 seconds mark.

"I got the job done. Yesterday we were a bit in trouble. I wasn't really happy with the car, we had some problems and I just couldn't get the rhythm," said Vettel, who can take his 50th F1 victory on Sunday.

"Today I switched on. I guess I woke up the right way and what a day. The car was incredible, it just kept getting quicker. In my final lap I had a small mistake, otherwise I think there was a little bit more. But it was fantastic."

Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who could have become the youngest driver ever to take pole, dominated all three practice sessions but the 20-year-old could not keep pace with the Ferraris when it mattered most.

The Dutchman will line up third.

"I'm very happy with this weekend so far," said Verstappen, who has been much criticised for his mistakes this season. "The car's been working really well...to be third is great for us. In the race I think we can do a really good job."

What happened last time in Canada?

Lewis Hamilton took his third win in three years for Mercedes ahead of team-mate Valtteri Bottas. It was Hamilton's sixth win here overall and it brought him back to within 11 points of Vettel's championship lead.  Daniel Ricciardo took a creditable podium for Red Bull with Vettel trailing behind in fourth place. Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon scored a very decent haul of points for Force India - 18 in total - while Canadian Lance Stroll scored the first world championship points of his career. 

What is our prediction?

Mercedes and Ferrari are likely to be the two quickest cars around here but Lewis Hamilton has spoken of concerns about his team's competitiveness in Montreal after they delayed a planned engine upgrade, whilst Ferrari will be using their own upgrade. As ever we will get a better idea after first and second practice but it could be Ferrari with the upper hand. That said, Lewis Hamilton is an expert around here and will get the absolute maximum out of his Mercedes. We are going for Ferrari to bounce back from a disappointing few weekends, though. 

Podium prediction: 1: Vettel 2: Hamilton 3: Raikkonen