Much like team-mate Pierre Gasly, Brendon Hartley has never raced at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, only experiencing the track on the various simulators he’s had the opportunity to use, and he cannot wait to get the opportunity to drive it this weekend.
The Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda driver has had a troubled start to his first full campaign in Formula 1 but is eager to get started this weekend after being repeatedly told it is one of the highlights on the calendar.
“I’ve never been to Canada before and I’ve been told by every driver that this track is one of the highlights on the calendar, so from one highlight on the calendar to another – from Monaco to Montreal,” said Hartley.
“And it’s also partly a street track, which I love, although this is a lot faster than Monaco and the barriers aren’t as close, apart from in a couple of places. So far, my only experience of the track is on the simulator, with Toro Rosso and also in the past with other teams and manufacturers.”
Hartley remains optimistic of a strong performance in Montreal particularly as the updates brought to the Monaco Grand Prix seemed to be a step in the right direction. He is eager to see how this translates this weekend as he aims for only his second top ten finish of the year to add to his solitary point from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
“Aside from the racing, everyone tells me the city is good fun, it’s a great race to be part of and the track has provided amazing racing over the years,” said the New Zealander.
“The aero update introduced at the last race looks to be working well and the team has been working very hard behind the scenes to bring all the performance we can get, so I’m optimistic about the coming weekend.”
