Verstappen really enjoyed his first 2026 podium and dueling with Hamilton

A First Podium, Finally

Max Verstappen secured his first podium of the 2026 Formula 1 season at the Canadian Grand Prix, crossing the line third after an intense late-race duel with Lewis Hamilton — and the four-time world champion made no attempt to hide his surprise at finding himself on the Montreal rostrum.

He was candid about the role of fortune in the result: "But you also have to look at it with George retiring, McLarens making a mess of the strategy. So, for me to be here, of course I'm very happy."

The Hamilton Battle: Energy, Speed, and Enjoyment

The highlight of Verstappen's race was a wheel-to-wheel fight with Hamilton in the closing stages, a contest both drivers appeared to relish. When asked about Hamilton's description of their duel as "awesome," Verstappen was in full agreement.

"Yeah, it was very good. I enjoyed it a lot," he said.

The four-time champion explained how the energy-sensitive nature of the Montreal circuit shaped the fight: "When you are within a second at this track, we are very energy poor around here, and of course when you are within a second, you're allowed to spend a bit more energy, so then on the straights of course you gain a bit of speed and around here that is very efficient actually."

Verstappen pushed hard to reclaim second place in the final laps, but ultimately the position eluded him. "The last few laps I tried to get back, but it was good. I mean, we're pushing flat out and, yeah, was just very nice for me." — a sentiment echoed in his post-race comments about McLaren's strategic blunders that opened the door for Red Bull.

Tyre Windows and Race Execution

Reflecting on the technical side, Verstappen acknowledged that Red Bull's package was better suited to one compound over the other. "I think on the Softs we're a little bit more competitive, and then on the Medium I never really felt like I could switch on the tyre, so the tyre was just not in the right window for us, and that stint was then a little bit more difficult to feel any kind of grip."

Despite the limitation, he was satisfied with how the team navigated the race: "We still did a good job. I think for us to have our first podium is just very positive and, of course, very pleased with that in quite tricky conditions, I would say."

And perhaps most tellingly, Verstappen noted something refreshingly straightforward about his Sunday: "I think it's my first race where I basically had a normal race, nothing crazy happened, so that's also nice."

For a driver who has endured a turbulent start to the new era, a clean race and a podium finish may prove to be exactly the platform Red Bull needed.