Technical challenge of the Gilles Villeneuve Circuit

There are no long corners on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve at Montreal. The combination of short, slow corners and chicanes are linked by six long straights, which place an emphasis on high top speeds.

As a result, the cars run in a low downforce set-up for the first time this year and the main engineering focus of the weekend is tyre and brake management. To combat the track’s smooth asphalt, Bridgestone brings its soft and super-soft compounds to the race, as was the case in Monaco, but the heat generated by the centrifugal forces along the straights and under braking make tyre graining an issue.

The circuit is also the hardest of the year on brake wear. The cars slow from seventh to second gear on six occasions during the lap, but the engineers are unwilling to enlarge the size of the brake ducts due to the resultant increase in aerodynamic drag. When you add the strain placed on the gearboxes - there are more gear changes per lap than at Monaco - the 70-lap Canadian Grand Prix is one of the biggest technical challenges of the year.

Full throttle: 74%
Brake wear: Hard
Downforce level: Low - 3/10
Tyre compounds: Soft / Super Soft
Tyre usage: High
Average speed: 200kph (124mph)