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Three podium finishes and one sprint win - but no main pole for Ferrari so far in the 2025 campaign.

The noise from the Italian media this week has centred around team principal Fred Vasseur and the possibility the Scuderia heirachy may be losing faith in the Frenchman's leadership.

Vasseur has called the speculation "disrespectful", while Lewis Hamilton said the 57-year-old is the man to take the Italian team back to the top.

Charles Leclerc, who crashed in first practice, has been closest of the two Ferrari drivers at challenging for pole. But the Monegasque driver did say on the team radio after his fast lap in FP3 that he made "too many mistakes".

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Max Verstappen is the only other driver to muscle his way in on a pole position so far this year and the Dutchman is aiming to achieve something no one else has at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve - win four races in a row. He's celebrated victory twice from pole here and won from P2 in 2024.

Will Verstappen be cautious in his approach given he's on thin ice with his penalty points? Probably not. He now has 11 penalty points on his licence after his contact with George Russell in Barcelona - one away from a race ban.

Two of those points expire after the Austrian Grand Prix at the end of the month, but that still leaves him with nine until the the Mexico City Grand Prix in October.

The talk of the tarmac these days now that the new C6 soft compound is in play is what is the best qualifying tyre?

This is the third weekend the softest trio in the Pirelli range has been selected and in the previous two grands prix, the road to Q3 has looked quite different to other tracks on the calendar, with the yellow mediums making appearance alongside the red softs.

Williams team principal James Vowles was asked by Sky Sports which tyre he thought was the best for today's qualifying. "You’ll find out at the end of Q3," he said with a smile.

"The reality is [the C5 medium and C6 soft] both have their strengths and merits," he added. "It’s a bit warmer today and I think the medium in that condition may be just a little bit better."

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Ideally, Mercedes would like the temperature in Montreal to drop a couple of chilly degrees so their car can perform at its optimal best. But the sun is out, so hey ho.

While Kimi Antonelli secured a sprint pole in Miami, the Silver Arrows are yet to taste a main Saturday success, although George Russell did line up on the front row in P2 in China.

At last year’s Canadian qualifying, Russell beat Max Verstappen to take Mercedes’ first pole of the campaign after the two drivers set identical lap times of 1:12.000 - something the pair have also done a few times this season.

The title race has changed hands between McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the opening nine races, with Piastri holding the aces heading into tomorrow’s grand prix with a 10-point championship lead.

Norris has two pole positions and two wins this year, Australia and Monaco, but he’s had to watch on as his Australian team-mate has been the driver in form.

BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson sat down with Briton Norris this week to chat about intra-team rivalries, how he views his start to the campaign and racing four-time world champion - and his good friend - Max Verstappen.

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We could be in for a five-way fight for pole position today if final practice was anything to go by.

Lando Norris topped the timesheets earlier on by just 0.078 seconds from the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, with George Russell third, Lewis Hamilton fourth and reigning world champion Max Verstappen in fifth.

Title leader Oscar Piastri couldn't quite reach the heights of his McLaren team-mate and a shunt at the 'wall of champions', bringing out a red flag, left the Australian down in eighth place.

Fernando Alonso was sixth, the other Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli was seventh and the two Williams of Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon completed the top 10.

Lorraine McKenna
BBC Sport Journalist

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Hello, folks. Any mistakes made during practice can be forgotten - this is where it counts now over one lap of the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve.

McLaren sealed all three pole positions during the recent triple-header, taking two victories, and are likely to be the favourites again today. But it's been a slightly frustrating start to the weekend for the constructors' champions, who are carrying upgrades in Montreal, so is this maybe an opening for their rivals to grab the best seat in the house for Sunday’s 70-lap race?

Qualifying gets under way at 21:00 BST.

The weather forecast for the fight for pole is warm, sunny, some light winds around but zero chance of rain. No changeable conditions hitting the track this year.

Andrew Benson
BBC F1 correspondent in Montreal

Image source, Reuters

McLaren’s Lando Norris led Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in a final practice session that suggested three or perhaps four teams could be in contention for pole position at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Norris was 0.078 seconds quicker than Leclerc, with Mercedes’ George Russell third fastest, ahead of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.

Russell was 0.151secs behind Norris, Hamilton and Verstappen each about another 0.1secs further adrift.

Championship leader Oscar Piastri ended the session eighth fastest after a collision with the wall at the final corner, the notorious ‘wall of champions’.

Piastri hit the wall a glancing blow midway through the session, breaking his right rear wheel, but he was able to drive the car back to the pits.

Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg had a spin at the same corner shortly afterwards, breaking his rear wing, and the debris from the two incidents led to a brief red-flag period.

Haas driver Oliver Bearman was another to collect the wall during the session.

Norris was continuing to use a front suspension revision McLaren have introduced this weekend in an attempt to increase feeling from the front axle, an issue that the Briton feels has influenced the turnaround in form between himself and team-mate Piastri this season.

At Red Bull, Yuki Tsunoda has the same specification car as Verstappen for the first time since his huge crash at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix led to a shortage of parts but he ended up last after brake problems.

He, along with Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto, is also under investigation for an infringement during the red flag.

Right time for us all to take a break. Thank you for joining us in third practice. And a thank you to the Gorundhogs for staying put, I didn't spot any scurrying around the track.

Go and get your tea or dinner (depending on where you are in the country) and come back for build-up to qualifying at 20:30 BST.

It is very close at the top of the leaderboard in third practice and I'm hoping that makes qualifying interesting.

Lights out at 21:00.

See you in a bit!

Third practice saw quite a few drivers touch or hit the wall of champions, notably Oscar Piastri who had a bit of damage and puncture.

Drivers will want to avoid the wall in qualifying or it could affect their starting position for the race.

It's right there at the exit of the chicane, after tight corners in turn 13 and 14. Hit the kerb or miss the apex and you might find yourself against the wall.

I do find it funny that the wall is given a positive name for the damage it can cause to cars.

It's been a rough day for Yuki Tsunoda, he missed a chunk of third practice with issues on his car. He managed to get out for the last few minutes of the session but remained in last spot.

He has also been noted for a red flag infringement. So has Sauber rookie Gabriel Bortoletto.

Lando Norris called yesterday's session the worst Friday, his Saturday is a lot different as the McLaren driver puts his car at the top of the leaderboard.

His team-mate Oscar Piastri only manages eighth.

11. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)

12. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

13. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)

14. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

15. Ollie Bearman (Haas)

16. Esteban Ocon (Haas)

17. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)

18. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)

19. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)

20. Yuki Tssunoda (Red Bull)

Sam Bird
Formula E driver on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

I think both McLarens will be in the fight for pole and George Russell will be right up there as well.

You can't discount Max Verstappen and now you can't discount both Ferraris.

1. Lando Norris (McLaren) 1:11.799

2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.078

3. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.151

4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.251

5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.273

6. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +0.448

7. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.549

8. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.720

9. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.720

10. Alex Albon (Williams) +0.774

Sam Bird
Formula E driver on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

We've seen so many fast laps from George Russell, he looks really comfortable in that Mercedes.

I would pick him for pole position, the way he's able to negotiate the final chicane, he looks like a man that is at one with his machinery.

The weather is looking glorious out in Montreal, sunny and blue skies.

It's set to be the same for Sunday's race, but you never know!

Less than five minutes to go. Yuki Tsunoda is back out on the track, time for a few more laps before the session is over.

He has been noted for a red flag infringement though, is there a possible grid penalty coming his way?

Fast laps happening all over the circuit, it's really close at the top of the board, gearing up for an exciting qualifying, hopefully.

George Russell makes an excellent save as his car nearly touches the wall.