Sergio Pérez had a bizarre 2026 F1 Canadian GP after he suffered a suspension failure on lap 39. Before the incident, he held a promising position, demonstrating his skill in the race despite the Cadillac team being at the back of the field.
Tyre gamble and suspension failure at the 2026 F1 Canadian GP
Speaking in the print media pen after the Canadian GP concluded, Pérez was asked about the team’s gamble with the tyre strategy. Similar to the McLaren and Audi duos, the Cadillac team began both drivers on inters. However, at the first pit stop, the Mexican driver opted for soft tyres, then mediums, before returning to softs.
“It was honestly 50-50 at that point. We took the gamble. At that point, I felt like it stopped raining a little bit less. Then it became a lot clearer that we were on the wrong tyre very early on. Within three laps we killed the inter. That was the biggest issue out there, but we managed to recover. We had some good pace out there, good fights with the Haas. We overtook the Haas [Ocon] and unfortunately we had a suspension failure at the end.”
When asked to clarify if he had touched anything that led to the failure, Pérez said:
“No, we just had a suspension failure.”
From the onboard footage, it did not show Pérez hitting anything, rather, the car issue happened by itself. He continued to be asked whether it was worrying, and explained:
“I think it’s something we have to understand and get on top of because it’s not ideal what is happening and what has happened. It’s something we need to investigate and hopefully come on top of, because it’s not ideal. I think operationally we are still lacking a lot and we are not making the progress we are making in terms of performance. So we have to be able to maximise the car performance at the moment.”
Steady progress at Cadillac is shown at the 2026 F1 Canadian GP
The Cadillac F1 team appeared to be starting on inters as a gamble instead of simply expecting the rain to intensify. As the team is new to the grid but has two very experienced drivers, they decided to take a gamble.
“The lap to grid laps, they felt like 50-50. It was really hard to choose a tyre. Then when we went on to the race with so many aborts, the rain just calmed down quite a bit, and it was a lot clearer for the slick tyre.” Pérez explained.
Asked about the overall progress of the team in 2026, Pérez explained:
“I’m impatient at the moment with the operational side. I think it’s something we have to improve. We are in a massive hurry because we are not maximising the results. Like today for example, or like yesterday in Qualifying we had again issues operationally. I think we are making progress on performance, which is very positive. On the operational side, it’s something we are lacking tremendously. We have to find our way for the European season now.”
The progress in performance has been showing, especially considering Pérez was P11 in the Sprint before he was hit with a penalty. Speaking about his own performance since coming back this season, the Cadillac driver said:
“I’m very happy with my performances, with my level of driving. I’m happy I came back and proved to myself that I’m one of the best out there. That to me is really nice, and I’m very happy with the level of driving I’m doing.”
Pérez on overachieving at present
When asked if he enjoyed the F1 Canadian GP race, Pérez said:
“It was enjoyable. When you are over-delivering week in and week out, that’s something quite nice.”
The Montreal track is fairly enjoyed by many drivers. Despite the unfortunate retirement, the Mexican driver still took positives from the weekend. He continued to be asked if the recent performances indicated that the race pace is getting closer, to which he explained:
“Yes, I think so. Especially in Sprint events, a lot of things can happen. People not maximising their performances, and we can be in the mix. We just have to keep finding performance. Operationally, we just have to keep doing our job.”
