After years of stability, F1 reliability can no longer be taken for granted

The Canadian Grand Prix, a sprint weekend held on the artificial island built for Expo 67, served up close racing and another shake-up in the standings. Nineteen-year-old Kimi Antonelli has now won four straight races and leads his Mercedes teammate George Russell by 43 points after five events; with 25 points for a win, Russell could quickly fall the equivalent of two victories behind.

It is still early in the season—last year Oscar Piastri led Max Verstappen by more than 100 points at the Dutch Grand Prix (race 15 of 24) and finished the year 11 points adrift. Russell had been running in control at Montreal until a catastrophic battery failure ended his day on lap 30.

‘‘To finish first, first you have to finish,’’ as Murray Walker put it, and the result underlines how unusual the hyper-reliable hybrid years of 2017–2025 were.

Canada, Montreal

canadian grand, sprint weekend, expo 67, kimi antonelli, george russell, mercedes, oscar piastri, max verstappen, battery failure, reliability