MONTREAL: Max Verstappen tightened his grip on a second successive world championship with an assured win in Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz took second with Lewis Hamilton in third for Mercedes.
This was Verstappen’s sixth win of the season in his 150th Grand Prix. His nearest title rival, Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, retired early with engine failure.
He soaked up late pressure from Sainz leaving the Spaniard still looking for his maiden win.
“I was giving it everything, but so was Carlos. He was pushing, charging, pushing, charging, naturally it’s easier to charge with DRS. I had fun today,” said the 24-year-old Dutchman.
Sainz said: “We were quicker, we were faster all race, but it’s difficult to overtake around here. I’m particularly happy with the race pace, with the way we were able to put pressure on Max.”
Hamilton was as happy as if he had won such has been the struggle with this year’s Mercedes.
“It’s quite overwhelming to get this third place, it’s been such a battle this year, but we continue to stay so vigilant and focused.”
He added: “They’re a little bit too fast for us at the moment but we’re getting closer, so we’ve got to keep pushing.”
George Russell in the other Mercedes took fourth ahead of Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari who had started at the back of the grid after new engine components.
Verstappen wins Canadian Grand Prix to tighten grip on title race
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Verstappen wins Canadian Grand Prix to tighten grip on title race
- The Canadian GP was Verstappen’s sixth win of the season in his 150th Grand Prix
- Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz took second with Lewis Hamilton in third for Mercedes
Pakistan captain rules out ‘major’ squad changes before T20 World Cup 2026
- T20 World Cup will take place in India in February, with Pakistan to play its matches in Sri Lanka
- Pakistan have recorded back-to-back T20I series victories over Sri Lanka, South Africa this year
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha set his sights on winning the T20 World Cup 2026, ruling out any “major changes” to the squad before the megaevent next year.
The 10th edition of the T20 World Cup will commence on Feb. 7 next year in India. Pakistan will play all of its matches in Sri Lanka as per a deal brokered by the ICC that allows India and Pakistan to play each other at neutral venues.
Pakistan have tried left-arm pacer Salman Mirza, brought back former captain Babar Azam to the T20I squad and tried fast bowler Naseem Shah and played several all-rounders in the squad this year, including Saim Ayub, Mohammad Nawaz and Faheem Ashraf.
“I think our roles are defined and we need to give a chance in the next six games with consistency to this playing XI and those roles, so that we can head to the World Cup with confidence,” Agha said in a podcast with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
“I don’t think there will be any major changes because we were keeping this World Cup in mind since the last six to seven months in the way we were practicing or selecting the players for the team,” he added.
Pakistan will next play a three-match T20I away series against Sri Lanka before they head to the T20 World Cup.
The South Asian country has encountered success in white-ball matches recently, winning a tri-nation series tournament against Afghanistan and the UAE in September.
Agha also led his team to the final of the Asia Cup later the same month which they lost to India. However, he led the Green Shirts to wins against Sri Lanka and South Africa in the T20I series against both countries at home later.
