Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion

I think, of course, there is so much pressure on Franco, it's the first lap. It is not something you want to be doing to impress your bosses, but it is early days, it's a cold atmosphere here.

A burning question whenever we arrive in Canada is what to call these little guys - so I'll let you decide this weekend. Whatever you pick, that's what we'll write going forward.

Hit the left thumb for groundhog, or tap the right thumb for marmot.

Image source, Reuters

"My steering wheel feels very heavy," says Max Verstappen to his Red Bull pit wall as he goes top of the timesheets with a 1:16.067 on the soft tyre. The Dutchman needs to keep his powder dry in Canada to avoid any penalty mishaps, and now his engineer is back on the radio to say they're monitoring the situation.

Abbi Pulling
F1 Academy champion

This is the only time of the year the track is used. It's a street track, semi-permanent, it can be really, really dirty, we've had some of the support cars out earlier. There's some dust being kicked up. It can create some graining. We can expect them to struggle a bit to get the tyres up to temperature.

It's a packed house at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve for Friday practice, which is great to see. Championship leader Oscar Piastri is carrying an aero rake on his McLaren early doors, with a set of the C6 soft tyre.

Franco Colapinto has brought out a yellow flag already. The Alpine driver has spun his car at the beginning of his first push lap.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, FIA

Just five teams have brought along updates for round 10 in Canada including constructors' leaders McLaren (two performance and one circuit specific) and Mercedes. But Ferrari and Red Bull arrive empty handed in the tweak department this weekend.

McLaren

Front wing, rear wing, front suspension.

Mercedes

Floor edge, floor corner.

Racing Bulls

Front wing, rear corner.

Aston Martin

Front corner.

Alpine

Front wing.

Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar is a popular lad today.

First practice in Montreal is green.

Image source, Getty Images

BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Greetings to Harry Benjamin and BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson, who are joined in the commentary box today by F1 Academy champion Abbi Pulling.

Click the 'listen live' tab at the top of the page to tune in or just scroll through the live radio dial at the top of BBC Sounds and tap on Sports Extra 2.

Welcome back to the softest trio of tyres in the Pirelli range for this weekend's grand prix.

For the third time this year, the C4 will be the hard, the C5 is the medium and the new C6 takes on the role of the soft compound. The green intermediates and blue full wets are also available, should they be needed.

The smoother tarmac at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve means tyre degradation isn't as severe as other tracks on the calendar. The unpredictable weather in Montreal, however, does play a big factor in strategy for the weekend. Last year's wet race start saw 18 drivers opt for the intermediates, while Haas selected the full wets.

Image source, Getty Images

How will the rookie class of 2025 fare when presented with the famous 'Wall of Champions'? A number of drivers are taking to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the very first time and Liam Lawson, sporting a tiny moustache on Thursday, has being asking Daniel Ricciardo, maiden F1 winner here in 2014, for some tips on how to successfully complete a lap in Montreal.

"Use lots of kerb is probably the main one," said Lawson of Ricciardo's advice, adding Canada is a unique track which can be quite bumpy but he and the other drivers are looking forward to the challenge this weekend.

BBC Radio 5 Live's F1 commentator Harry Benjamin has picked out his five things to watch at the Canadian Grand Prix, including the need for Max Verstappen to be on his "best behaviour" with the world champion at risk of picking up a one-race ban.

Image source, Getty Images

Yuki Tsunoda will gain membership to the century club when he starts his 100th race in Formula 1 this weekend.

It's been a tricky time for Tsunoda since his move from Racing Bulls to replace Liam Lawson at Red Bull early in the season. The Japanese driver has picked up just seven points in seven races and is sitting 15th in the drivers' championship.

A strong qualifying performance would be a great way to start his milestone race. Tsunoda has failed to make the top 10 shootout at the past three grands prix but he's been on track testing in Barcelona recently in the hopes he can get to grips with the difficult second Red Bull car.

While McLaren are way out in front on 362 points in the constructors' championship, Ferrari have jumped above Mercedes thanks to Charles Leclerc's podium finish in Spain. The Italian team are just six points clear of the Silver Arrows and 21 free of now fourth-placed Red Bull.

Racing Bulls are also on the move, leapfrogging Haas by two points to take sixth place behind Williams. Aston Martin, meanwhile, have dropped down the order into ninth spot.

Image source, Getty Images/BBC Sport

With his fifth win of the 2025 season Oscar Piastri has moved 10 points clear of McLaren team-mate Lando Norris in the drivers' championship, with four-time title winner Max Verstappen 49 points behind the Australian.

A newcomer to the top 10 is rookie Isack Hadjar, who picked up six points in Barcelona and is now ninth in the standings.

Image source, Getty Images/BBC Sport

Image source, Getty Images

Lance Stroll was a no-show for Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix after he experienced pain in his hand and wrist, the after-effects of an operation following his cycling accident in two years ago.

The Canadian had a successful medical procedure to resolve the issue and after some laps in an old F1 car at Paul Ricard earlier this week, he's back for Aston Martin at his home grand prix.

"The wrist is feeling good," said Stroll on Thursday. "It was bothering me for a few weeks, over in Imola, Monaco. And then Barcelona was just really brutal throughout the weekend. I got a procedure done and drove this week, and I was feeling pretty good, so I'm confident."

Andrew Benson
BBC F1 correspondent in Montreal

Image source, Getty Images

If Max Verstappen receives one more point on his licence over the next two races in Canada this weekend and Austria at the end of the month, he will be banned for a grand prix.

After Austria, two points come off his licence, but that still leaves him on nine points - three away from a ban - until the Mexico City Grand Prix in October.

Lorraine McKenna
BBC Sport Journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Hello, folks. The season has reached double digits already and the F1 roadshow has arrived in Montreal for round 10 at the Canadian Grand Prix.

We're also out of the triple-header woods until the final three races of the campign, so everyone can take a nice deep breath.

First practice at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve is at 18:30 BST.

Second practice goes green at 22:00 BST.

We left off in Barcelona two weeks ago with Oscar Piastri taking victory from pole position and McLaren celebrating a one-two finish. The biggest headline, however, was the penalty for Max Verstappen's controversial move on George Russell during the drama-filled final laps.

The Dutchman was also given three penalty points for his collision with Russell. That takes him to 11 points on his licence, one away from a race ban...