McLaren F1 star causes shock red flag after Canadian Grand Prix collision

Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris, McLaren, Saudi Arabia, 2025 — Photo: © IMAGO

Canadian Grand Prix

McLaren F1 star causes shock red flag after Canadian GP collision

A McLaren F1 star has paused running at the Canadian Grand Prix

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Saturday 14 June 2025 19:09 Updated: 22:30

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Oscar Piastri caused a red flag during FP3 at the Canadian Grand Prix, after the F1 championship leader collided with the Wall of Champions.

The McLaren star bounced off the kerb on his way into the final chicane, which saw him clip the wall.

As a result, Piastri suffered a puncture at the iconic part of the track leaving a pile of debris at the corner, and as he drove back to the pits a red flag was deployed.

Article continues under video

"It doesn’t look like much on television but when you’re in the car it’s a big thump," Nico Rosberg said on commentary for Sky Sports.

Piastri returned to the garage where the McLaren team inspected the damage to the floor area, but the Aussie returned to FP3 with 24 minutes left of the session.

What is the Wall of Champions?

The Wall of Champions describes the wall at Turn 14 on Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, and earned its nickname in 1999 after champions Michael Schumacher, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve all crashed there.

Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel have both fallen victim to the wall in 2005 and 2011 respectively, but several drivers who are not champions have also crashed into the wall.

In 2019, Kevin Magnussen crashed at the Wall of Champions, with Carlos Sainz also falling prey to its clutches at Turn 14 in 2016.

Whether Piastri's collision with the wall is a sign of title success remains to be proven, but for now he will have to focus on keeping team-mate Lando Norris at bay for the rest of the weekend in Montreal.