Strategy guide for the Canadian Grand Prix

F1 Grand Prix, GP Canada, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve

Just as at last year's Canadian Grand Prix, drivers could be divided regarding their choice for race strategy as Formula One's tyre supplier Pirelli consider both the one- and two-stop strategies as viable options. F1Technical's Balázs Szabó analyses the possible race strategies for today's Montreal F1 round.

For the Formula 1 Pirelli Grand Prix du Canada, the Milan-based tyre manufacturer chose the three softest compounds: C3 as P Zero White hard, C4 as P Zero Yellow medium, and C5 as P Zero Red soft.

The tyre selection was aided by the nature of the Gilles Villeneuve circuit that is a 4.361-kilometre semi-permanent track built on the artificial Notre Dame island in the middle of the St. Lawrence River, close to Montreal.

The race runs for 70 laps, consisting of six left turns and eight right turns with three straights. Average speed is relatively low, thanks to the frequent changes of direction caused by the close succession of corners, with continuous braking. Traction is key, and that is why Pirelli opted to bring the three softest compounds to Montreal.

As for last year’s tyre strategy, most drivers preferred a two-stop strategy but some opted for a one-stopper with a very long initial stint on hard; especially those starting close to the back.

Due to the local camera-related issues at the opening session and the rain-soaked final practice, there is only a heavily limited amount of data available for Pirelli and teams to work out the best strategy for today’s 52nd Canadian Grand Prix.

However, both the soft and the medium compound displayed encouraging durability in the heavy fuel runs in Free Practice 2. The C3 compound that is the hardest available at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is a bit of an unknown as only Ferrari sent their drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc out for a few exploratory laps in the dying stages of the second Friday practice.

Despite the fact that the tyres appeared to be durable during the long runs, the nature of the pitlane of the Montreal circuit usually entices strategists to flirt with a two-stop strategy with drivers only losing 18.5s with a pit stop. The pit lane has a length of 400 metres, but divers coming into the pits cut through the last chicane and skip the first corner, with the pit exit already in Turn 2.

Pirelli is therefore unsure which strategy could emerge as the fastest one at today’s Canadian Grand Prix. The Italian tyre supplier estimates that both the two-stop and the one-stop strategy are viable options for today with almost no difference expected to establish between the two.

With the weather expected to stay cloudy, but dry, slick tyres may reappear today after drivers were restricted to wet and intermediate tyres during the entirety of the Saturday action.

On paper, the fastest two-stop strategy would prompt drivers to start the race on the medium compound before swapping to the hard tyre and ending the race on the same compound.

The fastest one-stopper would see drivers use the white-banded hards for a very long opening stint before switching to the yellow-walled mediums for a 20-lap second stint.

However, alternative two- and one-stop strategies are also looking to be viable. The alternative one-stopper would be an alternate strategy of medium-hard while a different two-stop strategy would be a soft-hard-soft combination.

Interestingly, some teams - including Ferrari and Mercedes - opted to only save a single set of new hards for Sunday which will play a big role in deciding the strategy for today's 70-lap Montreal race.