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The 2023 F1 Canadian GP qualifying is set to be an intriguing one-hour session. Friday was quite disruptive, with teams not getting the opportunity to fine-tune their cars due to limited running. To make things even more challenging, rain is expected to play a role as well.
On the first day of the 2023 F1 Canadian GP weekend, we've seen a canceled FP1, a 90-minute FP2, thunderstorms and pollen blowing all over the track.
What can we expect on Saturday? Who is going to be on pole position for the 2023 F1 Canadian GP?
Let's find out as we take a look at our predictions for qualifying.
#5. Rain could possibly mean multiple stoppages
Apart from rain, fog and thunderstorms are also on the cards for qualifying. Unfortunately for F1 fans, what this means is that the visibility is going to deteriorate fast as soon as the downpour starts. That poses a serious threat to the drivers as the spray from these new cars can be a menace. With that in mind, we could possibly be looking at a session that features a few drivers overshooting a few corners and making mistakes.
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Overall, while a wet qualifying session could make things interesting, it could also mean quite a few stoppages.
#4. Mercedes and Ferrari have a real chance of rocking the boat
By the looks of it, Red Bull has not hit the sweet spot with the car yet. Things could change when the team goes back into the simulator and fine-tunes some aspects, or it could give teams like Mercedes and Ferrari a real opportunity to challenge for pole position.
For the 2023 F1 Canadian GP, both Ferrari and Mercedes have impressive talent in Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, and Charles Leclerc at their disposal. Could a challenge for pole position be on the cards? It's hard to predict but one thing for certain is the fact that this weekend is the best chance these teams have had to capture pole in a while.
#3. Aston Martin could possibly have a rough one this weekend
Bringing a completely new floor and some very noticeable changes to the car on a low-downforce track was a questionable choice from Aston Martin. To make things worse, losing FP1 was not ideal for the team, and that has resulted in a situation where they lack the data needed to fully understand the upgrades.
The first day showed that the car was in the ballpark when it comes to competing with the top four teams, but was it substantially competitive overall? Probably not. Aston Martin has the opportunity to go back and assess the upgrades overnight in order to make improvements. Can we truly expect that to happen? It looks tough at this moment.
#2. Watch out for Lando Norris in the wet weather conditions
Even if we ignore the very competitive lap times by McLaren on the first day, one thing that cannot be ignored is the fact that the car tends to work very well in colder temperatures. We saw that quite often in Barcelona and Monaco, where the car rose to prominence out of nowhere.
With every possibility of rain during the 2023 F1 Canadian GP qualifying, keep an eye on the McLaren drivers shining once again. Lando Norris has often been a standout in wet conditions, and don't be surprised if he manages to do well in qualifying as well.
#1. Max Verstappen secures pole position for the 2023 F1 Canadian GP
Max Verstappen will have to overcome quite a few challenges in the 2023 F1 Canadian GP qualifying. The Red Bull is not entirely hooked up on the track. Both Mercedes and Ferrari appear to have improved. Finally, rain could make things even more challenging.
Having said that, the fact that the Red Bull is still fast enough to challenge for pole position in the 2023 F1 Canadian GP cannot be questioned. In Max Verstappen, the team has the best driver for the job as well.
Finally, the question that remains is what would happen when swift decisions will have to be made? Red Bull takes the cake more often than not when it comes to picking the right time to go to the track and set a lap or picking the right tires. You take all these things into consideration and it's hard to disagree that a Max Verstappen pole position is the most likely outcome in qualifying.
