Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen will both head to the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix needing bounce-back performances after disappointing runs for Ferrari and Red Bull.
The fierce rivals have dominated Formula 1 over the past decade, with Nico Rosberg in 2016 the only driver not called Hamilton or Verstappen to lift a title. Yet the 2025 F1 season could see a different name take the title, with Oscar Piastri leading Lando Norris after nine rounds.
Hamilton is very, very far away from fighting for an eighth F1 drivers’ championship ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, as well. The 40-year-old is only sixth in the standings with a 115-point deficit to Piastri, who leads the way on 186 over Norris on 176 and Verstappen on 137.
Ferrari are also still to see Hamilton stand on a podium since his arrival from Mercedes from the 2025 campaign. The Briton’s best results in red have each come in F1 Sprint events, as Hamilton won the Shanghai Sprint from pole position and was also third in the Miami Sprint.
Lewis Hamilton ‘surprised’ Sebastien Buemi by not defending Nico Hulkenberg in the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix
His plight with the Scuderia even sank to a new low last time out in the Spanish Grand Prix, as Sauber star Nico Hulkenberg overtook Hamilton to finish in P5 and P6 after Verstappen’s penalty for driving into George Russell in Barcelona. Hulkenberg had also started from P15.
Hulkenberg drove straight past Hamilton for P6 on the road on Lap 65 of 66 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya with the help of DRS into Turn 1. But Hamilton also ‘surprised’ Red Bull F1 simulator driver Sebastian Buemi after not putting up any sort of defence on the straight.
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Buemi is adamant that Hamilton’s fierce rival would never yield a place like the Briton did to Hulkenberg in the Spanish GP, which was also why Verstappen raced against Russell in the style he did. But Verstappen is one penalty point from a race ban ahead of the Canadian GP.
Buemi told RacingNews365: “Of course, everyone has a different view. He was on the hard tyres [and] it was obviously very difficult. He had that moment coming out of the last corner.
“We all know Max, he fights [and] he’s not just going to give up like that. On the other hand, I got a bit surprised when Lewis got overtaken by Hulkenberg. Looking from the outside, I would have thought he would close the door, but somehow he didn’t.
“Max, when you watch, he’s not going to give up, he’s going to fight very hard. So, of course, where is the limit is always difficult. But, within that, he’s not going to give up.”
Lewis Hamilton lacked Nico Hulkenberg’s fight in Barcelona, but Max Verstappen had too much
Hulkenberg took his best result in six years with Sauber’s upgrades in Spain, as he climbed from P15 on the grid to P5 in the classifications after Verstappen’s 10-second penalty for his collision with Russell when the Red Bull racer rammed into the Mercedes star on Lap 64/66.
Sauber had also pitted Hulkenberg for a set of soft tyres under the safety car on L55, but so did Ferrari with Hamilton. So, the German did not hold a substantial tyre advantage over the Briton. Yet Hulkenberg fought after the restart to climb from P8, while Hamilton fell from P6.
Verstappen arguably fought too much after the restart, and must now get through the next two rounds in Canada and Austria without a penalty point. Red Bull fear Verstappen will get a race ban for the Austrian GP after reacting petulantly to their call to give Russell a position.
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