Canadian Grand Prix Tips
After a brief European visit, Formula 1 will be back across the Atlantic for this weekend's Canadian Grand Prix, the ninth race on the 24-event calendar.
Red Bull began the season with back-to-back 1-2 finishes, and it looked like we were set for a monotonous campaign in which they and Max Verstappen would easily retain the Drivers' and Constructors' Championships.
However, three months on, things are looking very different, with three different teams claiming victories in the last three races.
Verstappen eased to dominant wins in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, but he has found the competition much hotter recently as McLaren and Ferrari's improvements have enabled them to challenge the Dutch three-time world champion.
Lando Norris finally claimed his first career win in Miami, his 110th start, and went close to following it up at Imola next time, pushing Verstappen right to the finish line.
At Monaco last time, Red Bull never looked competitive all weekend as Charles Leclerc claimed a home victory, his first for almost two years, in a tactical affair.
Tip 1 - Charles Leclerc to win @ 6/1
Leclerc's sixth F1 win was a long time coming, but given Ferrari's recent form, he may not have to wait long for his seventh.
Monaco is not the best barometer of performance as the circuit is totally unlike any other, and overtaking is virtually impossible, but there are other signs that the Monegasque racer could be set for a spell of strong results.
He has been the most consistent performer of the season, finishing every race in the top four, and has collected the most points of anyone across the last three race weekends, including the Miami sprint.
Although Italy celebrated Leclerc's podium finish in Emilia Romagna, the team were disappointed and regretted using conservative engine settings. They felt victory was possible had they opted to lean more towards top speed than acceleration.
Despite that, Leclerc was able to keep pressure on Norris until he made a late mistake, and he finished only eight seconds behind winner Verstappen.
Montreal's layout is not too dissimilar to Imola, and the track could play to Ferrari's strengths.
Tip 2 - Oscar Piastri top-three finish @ Evens
Australian youngster Piastri's second place in Monaco gave McLaren their fourth podium finish in a row, and he looks good value for a follow-up in Canada.
That was his first appearance of the year on the rostrum, but he has finished fourth three times and team-mate Norris gets first preference when it comes to car upgrades, so Piastri can be forgiven for trailing the Briton in the standings.
Piastri has gone faster than Norris in qualifying at each of the last two races, and he was unlucky not to get pole position in Imola.
The team have stressed that slow corners do not suit their car, but that hasn't stopped them showing impressive form and while the Canadian track doesn't have many fast turns they should be strong again.
