Maple Mayhem: Five legendary Canadian Grands Prix

Jonathan Victoria • 12 Jun 2025 Features

A race where legends rise up, rain falls often, and barriers bite hard.

Few races on the Formula 1 calendar carry the unpredictable magic of the Canadian Grand Prix. Held on the man-made Notre-Dame Island in Montreal, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is a track where chaos brews and history is written against the concrete-lined straights. 

Here are five of the most thrilling, controversial, and unforgettable Canadian Grands Prix that left fans on the edge of their seats.

The wettest, wildest, longest race ever (2011)

Credit: Jenson Button reviews his 2011 Canadian Grand Prix victory! | Jenson's Memories (Sky Sports F1, YouTube)

This was the Grand Prix that had everything: downpours, crashes, comebacks, and a dramatic last-lap overtake. 

The 2011 Canadian GP holds the record for the longest F1 race ever, clocking in at 4 hours, 4 minutes due to torrential rain and lengthy red-flag delays. 

Eventual winner Jenson Button’s afternoon was the focal point and it was a rollercoaster to say the least – contact with teammate Lewis Hamilton, a drive-through penalty, another collision with Fernando Alonso, and running dead last by lap 40.

But from there? Pure magic. Button picked off car after car, including Mark Webber, Michael Schumacher, and finally defending Drivers’ Champion Sebastian Vettel on the very last lap, as the Red Bull driver cracked under pressure and slid wide. 

It was a stormy saga that played out like a three-act drama, a Hollywood script even Jerry Bruckheimer couldn’t produce.

Villeneuve's Historic Home Victory (1978)

The inaugural Montreal Grand Prix was already a big deal, but it turned into legend when local hero Gilles Villeneuve claimed his first-ever Formula 1 win. 

Thousands of fans braved the chilly November weather hoping for a miracle – and they got one. 

Gilles wasn’t the fastest that day, but kept his nose clean while others faltered, including Jean-Pierre Jarier who retired from the lead.

Villeneuve took control late in the race and crossed the line to a thunderous roar. It was a poignant, patriotic moment, and it etched his name in motorsport folklore. 

The Canadian would stamp his icon status a year on when he claimed his first and only Drivers’ Championship. Unfortunately, three years later he would lose his life during qualifying for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix. 

In his honour, the circuit that he conquered on the first effort was named after him, immortalising him in Formula 1, motorsport and Canadian sports history.

Jean Alesi’s emotional first (and only) win (1995)

In a career filled with what-ifs and near misses, Jean Alesi’s day finally came in Montreal.

Starting from fifth, he ran consistently behind the dominant Benettons of Schumacher and Herbert. But as fate would have it, Schumacher suffered electrical issues, opening the door for Alesi to inherit the lead—and ultimately, a long-overdue win.

To add poetic flair, he was sporting the car number 27 on his Ferrari– the same number Gilles Villeneuve carried while he drove for Ferrari. 

Fans mobbed the circuit before the cool-down lap was even complete. Alesi, ever emotional, couldn’t even get back to the pits. Schumacher later gave him a ride back to parc fermé.

Hamilton’s breakthrough & Kubica’s nightmare (2007)

Canada 2007 marked Hamilton’s first career pole and first F1 victory in only his sixth race. 

It was a clinical, composed drive that showcased the immense talent of the then-rookie. He led almost from lights to flag, navigating four safety car restarts with the calmness of a veteran.

Since his first victory, Hamilton has gone on to claim a record-equalling seven wins at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

But the 2007 race is also remembered for Robert Kubica’s horrifying crash.

On lap 27, while dicing with Jarno Trulli, he clipped a rear wheel, hit the wall at over 280 km/h, and cartwheeled across the track. 

His BMW Sauber was destroyed, yet incredibly, Kubica escaped with only a sprained ankle and concussion, and was back racing a month later.

Vettel vs. Hamilton: The penalty that split F1 (2019)

This race delivered vintage on-track tension and post-race drama that split fans and pundits alike. Vettel led much of the race, fending off Hamilton’s relentless pressure. But on lap 48, the German ran wide at Turn 3, rejoining in a squeeze that forced Hamilton close to the wall.

The stewards ruled that Vettel rejoined the track dangerously, slapping him with a five-second penalty – a decision that meant, despite crossing the line first, the win would be Hamilton’s.

A furious Vettel parked his car not in the second spot but much earlier in the pit lane, marched past parc fermé, and famously switched the P1 and P2 signs in protest. 

The podium was tense and the F1 world was ablaze with debate as it can often be with contentious decisions from the FIA…