Changeable conditions in Qualifying had offered potential for a more mixed-up grid, evident in the fact that we were only one of two teams to get both drivers through to Q3. P4 and P5, which ultimately became P3 and P4 after penalties, set us up well for a track that we had not expected to bring out the best from our car.
More Silverware in Canada
Another promising weekend for our Team and the W14 at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, as we return to Brackley with a third podium from the last two Grands Prix
The situation improved on Sunday, as Lewis' superb start saw him jump Fernando Alonso and hold on to P2 in the early stages, with George just behind the Aston Martin.
But the circumstances quickly changed when George hit the wall towards the end of the first stint on the exit of Turn 9. Having initially thought that was his day over, he managed to make it back to the pit lane while the Safety Car was deployed. An evaluation of the damage found no issues with the suspension so a nose change and tyre switch later, he was back out on track.
"I knew I was going to hit the kerb but wasn't expecting the sausage kerb to have such a violent response. So the next thing I know, I'm in the air, lost the rear on landing and was in the wall. It all happened so suddenly. Just sorry to the team as P3 or P4 was on the cards for us both," he lamented.
It all happened so suddenly. Just sorry to the team as P3 or P4 was on the cards for us both
George Russell
George returned to action at the back of the pack and primed for a fight back, looking to salvage some points from a trying race. Unfortunately he got stuck in a DRS train and despite making some good progress, his left-front brake had too much wear and he was forced to retire.
"I assumed it was over after the crash. I was quite surprised to continue and was very close to pulling up, but I learned from the Silverstone experience not to stop too early. It was a difficult pill to swallow but that's how the sport is.
"Once the car was back on track, it wasn't running perfectly, but it was good enough to drive. P8 was probably possible but I was in a lot of traffic, and we got the brakes in the wrong place for that, having not expected to be in such a train of cars."
By that time, our only car in the race had been passed by Alonso's Aston Martin in the fight for P2. The gap ebbed and flowed across the remainder of the race but unfortunately Lewis wasn't able to get close enough to properly challenge.
Nevertheless, it was a strong P3 finish for Lewis at a track we weren't expecting to be so competitive.
"I was really excited to be third and just trying to be in that mix," said Lewis. "Unfortunately we didn't quite have the pace to challenge. I was losing out particularly in the low-speed corners, Fernando and Max had great traction out of pretty much every corner. So we've got some work to do, but we're chipping away and I believe we will get there at some stage.
"It's quite the honour to be up on the podium with two World Champions. It's been a great weekend and to just have this consistency to be up on the podium is great."
The gap to the Red Bull out front remains sizeable, but there were some positive signs to take from our trip to Montreal.
"We didn't expect to perform well here in Canada, because of how the car DNA is," said Toto. "So it is encouraging to be not so far away. We must not forget that Max was having an easier time in front, there is still quite a gap to catch up.
It's quite the honour to be up on the podium with two World Champions
Lewis Hamilton
"We are understanding the car better, the simulations and tunnel correlate what we are seeing on track and that's been our problem over the last one and a half years. We're seeing good performance gains that are coming, we are seeing a better understanding of what the car needs, so the steps are getting bigger. We're making good inroads."
Now our focus switches to Austria in just under two weeks' time. We'll be taking time to debrief all the learnings from Canada and ensuring we keep the momentum going in Spielberg.