First run in 1961, the Canadian Grand Prix has been a staple of the F1 calendar. Held at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve since 1978, the 2.7-mile (4.4-km) street circuit is located on Notre Dame Island, minutes from downtown Montreal, Quebec.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the normally annual event to take a two-year hiatus. That makes the reigning winner seven-time champ Lewis Hamilton (from when he was merely a five-time titleholder). A lot has changed since that race, which featured Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel as pole-sitter.

Vettel was incensed by receiving a 5-second penalty after he'd already taken the checkered flag in the 2019 event. Hamilton was granted the victory and won six more races to claim the championship, while Vettel's Singapore win was his last one in a Ferrari.

Reigning champion Max Verstappen sits atop the standings, followed by Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez. The Dutch driver will seek his second podium and first win in Montreal.

Charles Leclerc will look to play spoiler to Verstappen. The Monegasque driver has placed either first or second in qualifying at every circuit this year but has little to show for it: two wins, three straight finishes off the podium, and two retirements in his last three races.

There will be large cheering sections for Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and Williams' Nicholas Latifi. Both were born in Montreal and will have hometown grandstands. Latifi has yet to factor into the points this season, while Stroll snagged 10th-place finishes in Miami and Imola.