Verstappen fastest in both practice sessions, Sainz & Vandoorne hit the wall
Final practice & qualifying on Saturday from 16:00 BST
Mercedes, you old tease. They've been telling us that they won't be as fast as their rivals, with Lewis Hamilton saying he expected a "difficult weekend" in Canada.
Not today, not today.
Hamilton one, Bottas two. Hamilton the first under the 1.14s thanks to a lively effort of 1:13.967.
Image source, Rex FeaturesWho would you like to see replaced in Formula 1 and why? Who would you replace them with?
Stuart Riddell: While I'd love to see Pastor back creating havoc, he does have a slightly more talented cousin in British F3. But really, we need Leclerc in a HAAS or Ferrari sooner rather than later ... unless Sauber improve.
Munro Gow: The Williams drivers need to be replaced and quickly. Team is suffering and they obviously are not giving good enough feedback to improve the car.
A good points finish for Fernando Alonso to break the record for most races finished?
He has currently finished 237 races, the same number as Michael Schumacher.
Alonso is back to being the fastest today, thanks to a fine effort of 1:14.064, with team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne fourth. In the middle are the two Mercedes drivers with Bottas second and Hamilton third.
Brendon Hartley is 13th quickest so far today with a 1:17.102. He could really do with being quicker than team-mate Pierre Gasly.
He isn't. Gasly 10th at the moment with a 1:16.133.
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live
I find Brendon Hartley's situation at Toro Rosso ridiculous. Hartley has done six races this year, four last year. Sure, he's made some mistakes. But he's still a rookie. Someone's appointed him to do the job.
If they're thinking of firing Brendon Hartley, perhaps they should fire the person who appointed him. With a bit more confidence, he could do a job for Toro Rosso. But this will shatter it, because I'm sure he will have read what's been written.
Pierre Gasly goes off into a run-off area, but no drama there and more importantly no walls there.
By the way, Valtteri Bottas has just gone quickest with a 1:14.243, two thousandths of a second faster than Fernando Alonso's McLaren.
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live
I think Stoffel Vandoorne is under pressure at McLaren. I rate Vandoorne very highly. He came into F1 with huge hype, but it's just so tough being in a team with Fernando Alonso. That's what you're compared against.
If your team-mate is phenomenal and you're pretty good, then you don't always look pretty good. The other dynamic is Lando Norris, who's leading F2, and who Toro Rosso have already tried to pinch. There's also the question as to whether Alonso wants to stay on next year. It's three McLaren drivers into two.
Who would you like to see replaced in Formula 1 and why? Who would you replace them with?
Steve Warnes: Stoffel Vandoorne with Jenson because Stoffel is rubbish.
John Southworth: I would like Kimi to be replaced by Ocon or Sainz at Ferrari. That seat deserves more than a driver coasting towards retirement. Vettel needs a young talent to push him.
Here we go again.
After that slight delay, there is a flurry of action as the green flag means we're all good to go. Another 50 minutes left of this first practice session.
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live
Sometimes drivers click with certain tracks, and that's certainly the case with Lewis Hamilton and Montreal.
You feel every time he comes here, he's a threat. You have to be aggressive with a positive front end. Lewis is happy sliding the car a bit. It comes back to his karting days.
Image source, .Remember we have a red flag as Nico Hulkenberg's Renault is recovered after he conked out on track.
Who would you like to see replaced in Formula 1 and why? Who would you replace them with?
Bob McFeil: I’d get rid of Ericsson. He provides nothing to the F1 field and in his fifth year still at a bottom end team, it’s time to look to someone else.
Kevin McCleave: Both Williams drivers with Paul Di Resta and Jenson Button or Kvyat.
Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer in Montreal, Canada
Renault: Gear selection issue for Nico, we don't know the cause and are looking at a solution so he can get back to the pits.
That Hulkenberg issue, with him right on the track, means the red flag is out and the cars are having to head back to pit lane so they can get Hulkenberg's stricken Renault out of the way.
"I select first gear but it is like the gears are not in," says Hulkenberg.
We have our first crawler of the day and the man with the problem is Renault's Nico Hulkenberg.
"I'm rolling but it felt like it was out of gear," says the Hulk.
Fernando Alonso will be hoping for a good weekend - the 300th race he will have entered. Well, it is a good start as a lap of 1:15.006 means he is the fastest man out there.
Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 live
Max needs to rein it in slightly. He really need a trouble-free weekend. The pressure is growing. The more you get questioned, the more it gets into your psyche. He just needs a couple of races with no incident.
Helmut Marko is not the man to put an arm round you. But Max signed a long-term deal last year so Red Bull can't just discard him. They've signed him up long term, believing he is a future F1 champion.
I'm surprised Christian Horner has come out publicly and said he needs to learn from Ricciardo. I'm sure behind the scenes he will be supportive. It's about getting it right.
Image source, Getty Images
Jennie Gow
BBC Radio 5 live pit-lane reporter
You do get the sense that Daniel Ricciardo's star is rising. The more he gets wins and points, the deeper Max Verstappen's troubles get.
I do feel sorry for Max because everyone was lumping on him yesterday, and he is a man under attack. Anyway, you'll be pleased to know that I asked Max another question after his comments yesterday, and I didn't get headbutted.
Now we are getting going. Daniel Ricciardo, winner last time out in Monaco is top of the times early on with an effort of 1:17.475.
Image source, Getty Images