After a two-week break, Formula 1 is back for the Canadian Grand Prix. Here’s who will participate in Thursday and Friday’s press conferences.
Before the mini-break came the Miami GP, where many teams brought upgrades. Ferrari brought 11 in an attempt to catch up with Mercedes, while McLaren brought seven. This weekend, it’s Mercedes’ turn to fight back. With a major upgrade package rumoured, the Silver Arrows are looking to extend their strong form once more. Despite the other teams’ upgrades, Mercedes won in Miami with Kimi Antonelli.
George Russell is second in the championship, right behind the 19-year-old; however, he has failed to stand on the podium in the last two races. Going into this race weekend, he plans to rectify that and close the gap to Antonelli.
Hamilton set to defend lack of sim training during first press conference
For the Canadian GP, one driver who will be present in the first scheduled press conference is hometown hero Lance Stroll. The Aston Martin driver is currently the only Canadian driver on the grid. For the Montréal race, he even has his own grandstand.
Joining him in the first session are Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton. Bottas, who rejoined the grid this year with Cadillac, and Hamilton, who now drives for Ferrari, were once teammates from 2017 to 2021.
Out of all three drivers present, Hamilton has had the best season so far, with Ferrari standing second in the Constructors’ Championship. Regardless of the improvement the Scuderia have made, the seven-time world champion was not happy with his Miami results. As a result, he decided not to use the simulator during the three weeks between Miami and Montréal.
His reasoning was that his best result this season came at the Chinese GP, and he did not use sim training ahead of that race. It was in Shanghai that he achieved his first podium with Ferrari.
Photo: Race Pictures
Russell to take on talks of upgrades in second press conference
In the second press conference on Thursday, George Russell will be joined by Pierre Gasly and Arvid Lindblad.
Russell won the 2025 Canadian GP after losing out to Max Verstappen in 2024. After the Miami race, he told GPblog and others that he was not worried about the championship fight just yet. Mercedes has won all four races of the season so far. However, it’s been Antonelli on the top step in three of those races. Russell has not won since the first race of the season.
Also off to a good start are Gasly and Alpine. Alpine, in fifth, are only seven points behind fourth-placed Red Bull Racing. The French driver is also only 10 points behind Verstappen.
As for Lindblad, who joined Racing Bulls in 2026, this is the second time he has featured in a Thursday press conference line-up. The first was at his debut race, the Australian GP.
On Friday, Andrea Stella will represent McLaren with Laurent Mekies (Red Bull Racing) and Alan Permane (Racing Bulls) joining him.
McLaren and Red Bull are confirmed to be bringing upgrades to the Canadian Grand Prix.
Full 2026 Canadian GP press conference schedule
| Day | Time (Local) | Time (UK) | Session | Participants |
| Thursday | 13:30 | 18:30 | FIA Drivers’ Press Conference | Valtteri Bottas, Lewis Hamilton, Lance Stroll |
| Thursday | 14:00 | 19:00 | FIA Drivers’ Press Conference | Pierre Gasly, Arvid Lindblad, George Russell |
| Friday | 14:30 | 19:30 | FIA Team Principals’ Press Conference | Laurent Mekies, Alan Permane, Andrea Stella |
| Saturday | After Sprint | TBC | FIA Post-Sprint Press Conference | Top three sprint finishers |
| Saturday | After Qualifying | TBC | FIA Post-Qualifying Press Conference | Top three qualifying drivers |
| Sunday | After Race | TBC | FIA Post-Race Press Conference | Top three race finishers |