Canadian Grand Prix

F1 race
Name =

---

Circuit = Mosport Park 1961-1977 Mont-Tremblant 1968-1970 Circuit Île Notre-Dame 1978-1981 Circuit Gilles Villeneuve (1982-2008)
Circuit_

Laps = 70
Circuit_length_km = 4.361
Circuit_length_mi = 2.709
Race_length_km = 305.270
Race_length_mi = 189.694
First_held = 1961
Last_held = 2008
Most_wins_driver = flagicon|Germany Michael Schumacher (7)
Most_wins_constructor = flagicon|Italy Ferrari (13)
Current_year = 2008
Pole_driver = flagicon|Great Britain Lewis Hamilton
Pole_team = McLaren-Mercedes
Pole_time = 1:17.886
Winner = flagicon|Poland Robert Kubica
Winning_team = BMW Sauber
Winning_time = 1h 36m 24.447s
(189.987 km/h)
Second = flagicon|Germany Nick Heidfeld
Second_team = BMW Sauber
Second_time = +16.495s
Third = flagicon|UK David Coulthard
Third_team = Red Bull-Renault
Third_time = +23.352s
Fastest_lap_driver = flagicon|Finland Kimi Räikkönen
Fastest_lap_team = Ferrari
Fastest_l

The Canadian Grand Prix (known in French as the "Grand Prix du Canada") is an auto race held in Canada since 1961.citeweb | url = http://theracingline.net/racingcircuits/racingcircuits/Canada/_gp.html | title = Canadian Grand Prix | publisher = Motor Racing Circuits Database | accessdate = 2008-01-14] It has been part of the Formula One World Championship since 1967. It was first staged at Mosport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario as a sports car event before it alternated between Mosport and Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Quebec after Formula One took over the event. After 1971 safety concerns led to the Grand Prix moving permanently to Mosport. In 1978 the Canadian Grand Prix moved to its current home on Île Notre-Dame in Montreal.

In 2005, the Canadian Grand Prix was the most watched Formula One GP in the world. The race was also the third most watched sporting event on the planet, behind the first place Super Bowl XXXIX and the UEFA Champions League Final. [ [http://www.exchange4media.com/e4m/media_matter/matter_010406.asp Most watched TV sporting events of 2005] - A special report from Initiative]

On October 7 2008, it was announced by the FIA that the Grand Prix would be dropped from the Formula One calendar for f1|2009, having been previously included in the Provisional Calendar. [cite news|title=Canadian GP dropped for 2009|url=http://www.itv-f1.com/news_article.aspx?id=44176|publisher=ITV-F1.com|date=2008-10-07] [cite web|url=http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2008/10/8483.html|title=FIA issue revised 2009 calendar|accessdate=2008-10-07]

History

The early Canadian Grand Prix was one of the premier events of the new Canadian Sports Car Championship, a series which had been created alongside the Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport in 1961. Several international sports car as well as Formula One drivers participated in the event. For the first five years, the event would be won by drivers with either prior Formula One experience, or would enter the championship after winning the Canadian Grand Prix. In 1966 the Canadian-American Challenge Cup ran the event, with American Mark Donohue winning. Formula One took over the following year, although the CSCC and Can-Am series continued to compete at Mosport in their own events.

The first winner in Montreal was Quebec native Gilles Villeneuve who died in 1982 on the final qualifying lap for the Belgian Grand Prix. A few weeks after his death, the race course in Montreal was named Circuit Gilles Villeneuve after him. Gilles Villeneuve was one of the first inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame, and the only Canadian winner at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

The 1982 Canadian Grand Prix, in the shadow of the death of Villeneuve a month earlier, saw another accident when Villeneuve's teammate Didier Pironi stalled on the grid. Raul Boesel struck the stationary vehicle, and Riccardo Paletti then struck the rear of Pironi's Ferrari. Pironi and F1 doctor Sid Watkins came to Paletti's aid to try to extract him from his car, which briefly caught fire. After a half hour, Paletti was extracted and flown to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

In F1|1987, the race was not held due to sponsorship dispute between two local breweries, Labatt and Molson. During the break the track was modified, and starting line moved to its current position.

Ferrari's Jean Alesi won the 1995 edition, which occurred on his 31st birthday and which would be the only win of his career. Alesi had inherited the lead when Michael Schumacher pitted with electrical problems and Damon Hill's hydraulics failed. the victory was a popular one for Alesi, particularly after several unrewarded drives the year before, namely in Italy. Alesi's win at Montreal was voted the most popular race victory of the season by many, as it was the number 27 Ferrari - once belonging to the famous Gilles Villeneuve at his much loved home Grand Prix. Schumacher gave Alesi a lift back to the pits after Alesi's car ran out of fuel just before the Pits Hairpin.

The 1997 Canadian Grand Prix was stopped early due to a crash involving Olivier Panis. He was sidelined for nine races and some see it as a turning point in the career of the 1996 Monaco Grand Prix winner.

In 1999, the final corner of Circuit Gilles Villeneuve became well-known for crashes involving former World Champions. Damon Hill, Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve all crashed into the same wall which had the slogan "Bienvenue au Québec" ("Welcome to Quebec" in English) on it. The wall became ironically known as the "Wall of Champions". The wall also was involved in a crash with Ricardo Zonta, who was, at the time, the reigning FIA GT sports car champion. In recent years, GP2 Champion Nico Rosberg and CART Champion Juan Pablo Montoya have also fallen victim to the wall.

In 2001, there was the first sibling 1-2 finish in the history of Formula 1, as Ralf and Michael Schumacher topped the podium. The Schumacher brothers would finish 1-2 in the 2003 edition as well. 2001 was also noted for Jean Alesi achieving Prost's best finish of the season; he celebrated his fifth place by doing several donuts in his vehicle, and throwing his helmet into the crowd.

The 2007 race was the site of rookie Lewis Hamilton's first win. On lap 67, Takuma Sato overtook the McLaren-Mercedes's Fernando Alonso, to cheers around the circuit, just after overtaking Ralf Schumacher and having overtaken Ferrari's Kimi Räikkönen earlier in the race. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/6739373.stm] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNGuw7khT98] The race saw Sato move from the middle of the grid to the back of the pack and to a high of fifth before a pit-stop error caused him to move back to eleventh. Sato he fought up 5 places in the field in the last 15 laps to finish sixth. Sato was voted "Driver of the Day" on the ITV website over Lewis Hamilton's first win.

In the weeks leading up the Grand Prix, city officials trap as many groundhogs as they can in and around the race course, and transport the animals to nearby Ile Ste-Helene. [http://www.canada.com/topics/travel/canada/AB/story.html?id=061eb1f5-2438-46a7-8474-2903cb9764e2] Nonetheless, in 2007, a groundhog disrupted the practice session of Ralf Schumacher. On race day itself, Anthony Davidson had been running in third until he struck a groundhog, initially thought to be a beaver, which forced him to pit and repair the damage to his front wing. In 2008, a groundhog crossed the track at the hairpin in the 2nd practice session but luckily did not disrupt the session.

On October 7th, 2008, the Canadian Grand Prix was dropped from the 2009 Formula One calendar, which left the Montreal race off the list for the first time since 1987. [cite web|url=http://www.grandprix.com/ns/ns20840.html|title=Canada missing from Formula 1 calendar in 2009|publisher=grandprix.com|accessdate=2008-10-08] In the provisional 2009 schedule released in June 2008, the Canadian Grand Prix was to have been held on June 7, a date taken by the 2009 Turkish Grand Prix in the revised schedule. [ Daily Mail, [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-1071789/Canadian-Grand-Prix-axed-Abu-Dhabi-gears-place.html Canadian Grand Prix axed as Abu Dhabi gears up to take its place] , "Sportsmail Reporter", 3:03 PM on 07th October 2008 (accessed 10-October-2008) ] Since the US Grand Prix was last held in 2007, this means that no Formula One race will be held in North America for the first time since 1958. [ PitPass.com [http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=36197 Canada GP organizers surprised by FIA decision] 08/10/2008 ] (The American Indianapolis 500 formed part of the FIA World Drivers' Championship from 1950 to 1960, but was not run to Formula One regulations and only very rarely entered by regular championship competitors.)

Sponsors

*Pepsi Cola Canadian Grand Prix 1961-1966
*Player's Canadian Grand Prix 1967-1971
*Labatt's Canadian Grand Prix 1972-1977
*Grand Prix Labatt du Canada 1980-1986
*Grand Prix Molson du Canada 1988-1996
*Grand Prix Player's du Canada 1997-1998
*Grand Prix Air Canada 1999-2005
*RBS Grand Prix Du Canada 2006-2008

Because of tobacco legislation which prohibited further such sponsorship, new venues, and a maximum of 17 races on the schedule, the Canadian Grand Prix was initially removed from the F1|2004 F1 schedule. However, Canadian officials were able to raise enough money to keep a Grand Prix race, with the FIA allowing expansion to an 18 race schedule. [http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2003/08/07/grandprix030807.html] [http://sport.guardian.co.uk/formulaone/story/0,10069,1027313,00.html]

Winners of the Canadian Grands Prix

Repeat Winners

Only includes World Championship events

Year by year

"A pink background indicates an event which was not part of the Formula One World Championship."

Notes

External links

* [http://www.grandprix.ca/ Official website] Languageicon|frc|French
** [http://www.grandprix.ca/home.html Official Website] Languageicon|eng|English
* [http://www.cmhf.ca/ Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame]
* [http://www.f1db.com/f1/page/Grand_Prix_Air_Canada_2005 Canadian Grand Prix Statistics]
* [http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=45.509114,-73.524113&spn=0.030457,0.057567&t=k&hl=en Satellite Photo]
* [http://www.restomontreal.ca/events/index.php?section=viewevent&event_id=305 Montreal Grandprix Event]
* [http://www.revupmontreal.ca/ Intel sponsored Canadian Grand Prix site]
* [http://ca.askmen.com/specials/2006_grand_prix/ AskMen.com - Grand Prix 2006 Coverage]
* [http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/story.html?id=9e05d4b0-6014-44e5-adf8-9253250e9f54/ 2006 attendance was 332,000]
* [http://thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0009383]