Canadian Grand Prixc first practice session abandoned due to CCTV fault, second session to run for 90 minutes

The Canadian Grand Prix’s first practice session was abandoned on Friday because of a failure of the CCTV system.

The drivers were starting to make their early attempts to get a feel for the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and also their new setups, with a handful of teams bringing some changes to Canada.

However, after Alpine’s Pierre Gasly stopped on the track, it had appeared that the Frenchman’s safe removal from the course would have allowed action to resume.

However it became clear that a delay was caused by another issue, with the CCTV system not working, with no quick solution to the fault.

The FIA said the CCTV “is a local installation and they are continuing to work to resolve the problem”.

Just 12 drivers had set a time, with Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas quickest.

The FIA then abandoned the remainder of FP1, and instead chose to extend FP2 to meet the requirement of 150 minutes between the two sessions, as the problem persisted.

As a result, the second session was extended to 90 minutes to account for the majority of the lost practice time, and will start at 21:30 BST.

Mercedes were frustrated in their attempts to continue their good form, with Lewis Hamilton reflecting on some recent success.

The team had their best performance at the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona, and they came to Canada with their upgraded package for the third weekend.

That has seen them get rid of their ‘zero-sidepod’ design, and with a twin-podium finish in Catalonia, Hamilton was optimistic.

“We’ve been making progress in the car. Last race, we’ve all been buzzing back at the factory, the whole team has this new energy and kind of feel that we’ve got a North Star – we know where we’re going and how to get there,” Hamilton said.

“Excited coming here. We generally don’t know whether this track suits our car and the car’s characteristics but the weather may change that.”