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Verstappen wins Canada Grand Prix, Spain’s Alonso is 2nd

Sports Desk, Jun 18 (EFE).- Dutch Red Bull driver Max Verstappen on Sunday widened his lead in the Formula One world rankings by winning the Canadian Grand Prix, the eighth race of the season, with Spain’s Fernando Alonso, driving for Aston Martin, coming in second and mounting the 1-2-3 podium for the sixth time this year.

Verstappen, 25, started in the pole position and achieved his sixth F1 victory so far this season – to equal the 41 victories of the legendary Ayrton Senna, who won three world titles for Brazil – on the Gilles Villeneuve circuit in Montreal, coming in ahead of the Spanish two-time world champion and also the United Kingdom’s Lewis Hamilton, with Mercedes, who came in third.

The Dutchman had an easy time during the 67-lap speed contest on Sunday, with the victory constituting the 100th win for Red Bull and maintaining their perfect winning record so far this season.

Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate George Russell had to withdraw from the race on the 56th lap after hitting the wall on one of the early corners.

Spain’s other F1 pilot, Carlos Sainz with Ferrari, finished fifth, just behind his teammate, Monaco’s Charles Leclerc, while Mexico’s Sergio “Checo” Perez, with Red Bull – whose brilliant work behind the wheel enabled him to pass six drivers during the course of the race, just as in earlier contests – finished in sixth.

Verstappen is still comfortably on top of the F1 rankings with 195 points, 69 more than Perez and 78 ahead of Alonso, who – in a young man’s sport – had his 42nd birthday a month ago and is third in the rankings for a championship contest he won in both 2005 and 2006.

Thailand’s Alex Albon, with Williams, ended in seventh, while Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, from France, finished in eighth.

Canada’s Lance Stroll, Alonso’s new colleague with Aston Martin, and Finland’s Valtteri Bottas with Alfa Romeo, ended the race in the ninth and 10th spots, garnering at least a few ranking points.

The next contest will be the Austrian Grand Prix on July 2 at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria.

EFE –/bp

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