Montreal, Canada — Ford Racing marked its return to the F1 podium for the first time in 23 years as Oracle Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen secured third place at the 2026 Canadian Grand Prix, powered by Red Bull Ford Powertrains.
Qualifying saw Verstappen secure a sixth-place start, but the flying Dutchman soon moved up to fourth place within the first three laps as cars ahead committed to early tyre changes. An entertaining tussle between Verstappen and the Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton eventually saw Max confirm his spot on the third step of the podium.
A successful weekend for Verstappen, having also secured points with his seventh-place finish in the Sprint on Saturday, closely followed by Visa Cash App Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindbald in eighth place.
Verstappen’s teammate Isack Hadjar also enjoyed his best result of the season in Montreal, claiming fifth spot on the day after starting seventh on the grid.
While Visa Cash App Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson showed strong race management to secure a seventh-place finish, teammate Lindblad’s Sunday was brought to an unfortunate early end on the starting grid.
Both cars for Oracle Red Bull Racing and Lawson securing their best results of the season is a tribute to the incredible work that the Red Bull Ford Powertrains team have done in this new era of engines and regulations.
For Mark Rushbrook, Global Director of Ford Racing, this was another milestone in the journey that started in 2022 with a phone call to Red Bull that triggered Ford’s return. ‘Seeing Max secure a first podium of the Red Bull Ford Powertrains era is a landmark moment for our partnership. It has been fantastic to witness the remarkable effort that has gone into the preparation for the 2026 season, and this result is a well-earned marker of the efforts of both Oracle Red Bull Racing and Ford Racing.
‘The progress we have seen across the board for all four cars across the Oracle Red Bull Racing and Visa Cash App Racing Bulls teams, powered by Red Bull Ford Powertrains both in the build up to and during the season has been special to witness. We cannot wait to see where the rest of the season takes us off the back of today’s milestone.’
The F1 season continues in just one week in Monaco as the teams will look to carry their Montreal momentum into round six of their respective campaigns.
