F1 News: FIA faces CANCELLATION dilemma ahead of Canadian Grand Prix

Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Canada — Photo: © IMAGO

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FIA faces CANCELLATION dilemma ahead of Canadian Grand Prix

The FIA may be expected to make a tough decision at this weekend's Canadian GP

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Thursday 6 June 2024 06:00

The FIA faces a significant dilemma ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix after the weather forecast promises heavy rain throughout the weekend.

Thunderstorms and rain are forecast for every single session at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, with the FIA known for calling off wet sessions.

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The 2021 Belgian Grand Prix, for example, was called off after being continuously delayed due to persistent rain.

With less than 75% of the race completed drivers were awarded half points, whilst fans both at the track and at home were left disappointed.

The Canadian GP is known for wet weather

Will it rain all three days in Montreal?

Thunderstorms often develop in the afternoon, creating rainfall of the same quantity as autumn.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the Canadian Grand Prix will all see rain and thunderstorms, with the worst weather expected on Saturday, the day of FP3 and qualifying.

Could qualifying be cancelled at the Canadian GP?

According to AccuWeather there is a 96% chance of precipitation and 36% chance of thunderstorms throughout the day.

It will be mainly cloudy and the temperature will drop to 17 degrees Celsius in the afternoon.

If the track becomes undriveable due to the wet weather, and poses a threat to driver safety, the FIA could choose to cancel qualifying.

What about F1’s wet weather tyres?

Will we be seeing the wet weather tyres frequently at the Canadian GP?

If it is a wet weekend drivers will have to use Pirelli’s full wet tyres, however these have been the subject of criticism in recent years.

Drivers’ described wet tyres as ‘pointless’ in 2023, complaining they were too slow compared to the intermediate tyre

“The extreme [wet] tyre is a pretty pointless tyre,” George Russell said after the Belgian Grand Prix in 2023.

“It’s really, really bad. It’s probably six, seven seconds a lap slower than the intermediate.

“The only reason you’d ever want the extreme wet is because you’re going to aquaplane on an intermediate, so that needs to be substantially improved.”

George Russell described 2023's wet weather tyre as pointless

Charles Leclerc also criticised Pirelli’s wet weather tyres, calling for them to be ‘faster’ and ‘closer’ to the intermediate tyre.

"There's some work that needs to be done because we've got extreme tyres that are really slow, but really good for [avoiding] aquaplaning, but we never drive in those conditions because of visibility,” he said

"So whenever it's driveable, we need to go on inters. It's quite tricky at the moment. I think the extreme should be faster and closer to the inters so we run more on the extreme than the inters, basically."

Red Bull FIA Hamilton Canadian Grand Prix Circuit Gilles Villeneuve