2008 Canadian GP preview: predictions

6th June 2008, 12:30 by Keith Collantine 26 Comments »

Lewis Hamilton, McLaren-Mercedes, Montreal, 2007, 470150

It looks like being nip and tuck between Ferrari and McLaren for victory at Montreal this weekend. And BMW might be in the mix with surprised championship contender Robert Kubica a candidate for victory at the track where he crashed heavily last year.

Who’s going to win the Canadian Grand Prix? These are my picks – make your predictions below.

Montreal was the scene of Lewis Hamilton’s maiden victory last year. It was exactly the type of circuit that played into McLaren’s hands with short corners and bumpy kerbs.

This year that picture seems to have changed. Ferrari’s pace in qualifying at Monte-Carlo, rumoured to be the result of their adoption of a ‘J-damper’ similar to what McLaren used last year, suggests they will not be anything like as far off the pace as they were last year.

Ferrari too have had excellent straight-line speed all year and it’s these two things that make me think they will be the team to beat this weekend.

But which of the Ferraris will be ahead? Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen have beat each other in three of the six races so far. Last year Massa headed an out-of-sorts Raikkonen before the Brazilian was disqualified. Both these drivers can be hard to read but I think Massa’s confidence high will give him the advantage.

McLaren aren’t going to be far behind though, and BMW will be in the mix and ready to pounce should the cars fall their way in a safety car period (there hasn’t been a Canadian Grand Prix without one since 2004).

I think we’ll see Massa on top with Hamilton leading the chase for McLaren. But Heikki Kovalainen’s going to be very close behind – he was in excellent form here last year. And I know I’ve said this before, but surely his luck has to change soon?

The second Ferrari will be third, but this could all change depending on whether there’s an unusual safety car period, and which Kimi Raikkonen shows up:

1. Felipe Massa
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Heikki Kovalainen

What’s your prediction for the top three in the Canadian Grand Prix? No one got the prediction right for Monaco but Cyanide came closest by accurately picking the top two.

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