There have been 15 Formula One drivers from Canada, four of whom have scored points. Gilles Villeneuve, rated amongst the greatest drivers of all time, died while qualifying for his 68th race. His son, Jacques Villeneuve won the World Drivers' Championship in 1997. Canadian drivers were absent from Formula One from his departure in 2006 until the arrival of Lance Stroll in 2017.
Current drivers
Lance Stroll has competed in Formula One since 2017. He began his Formula One career with Williams and scored a podium at the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix with a third-place finish. Stroll moved to Racing Point for the 2019 season where he was contracted to drive until 2020.[1][2][3] He now competes for Aston Martin F1 team, a rebrand of the former Racing Point team.
Gilles Villeneuve sitting on his Ferrari at Imola in 1979
Gilles Villeneuve started his Formula One career with a one-off drive for McLaren at the 1977 British Grand Prix. He was quickly signed up by Ferrari to replace the outgoing Niki Lauda and he would remain with the team for all his time in Formula One. Villeneuve's most successful year came in 1979 when he won three races and came second in the drivers' championship.[4] He was killed during qualifying in an accident at the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix – a collision with Jochen Mass pitched his Ferrari into the air and it was destroyed by the impact when it landed.[5] He never won a Formula One drivers' title and only won six races but is held as one of the best racers to ever compete in the sport.[4] In a survey conducted by Autosport asking drivers to vote for their choice of the greatest driver in history Villeneuve was placed tenth. Former teammate Jody Scheckter said of Villeneuve "I will miss Gilles for two reasons. First, he was the fastest driver in the history of motor racing. Second, he was the most genuine man I have ever known."[6]
Jacques Villeneuve, son of Gilles, was eleven at the time of his father's death. He had a successful career in IndyCar, winning the 1995 Indianapolis 500 and the 1995 PPG Indy Car World Series before moving to Formula One with Williams in 1996. He nearly won his first race, but an oil leak forced him to surrender the lead to his teammate and finished second.[7] He went on to win four races that year and clinched second place in the drivers' championship. Seven wins in 1997 saw Villeneuve go one better, achieving the title that had eluded his father. However, he would never win another race in his Formula One career, doing no better than four third-place finishes between 1998 and 2001. He retired from Formula One in 2006.[8]
In 1981 another member of the Villeneuve family had tried his hand at Formula One. Jacques, brother of Gilles, is sometimes now referred to as Jacques Villeneuve Sr. He failed to qualify for either of the two North American races he contested. He tried again at his home Grand Prix in 1983 but was unable to set a time good enough to allow him into the race.[9]
George Eaton competed in 13 Grands Prix with BRM, the majority of which were in 1970. His debut was in the 1969 United States Grand Prix and he entered one other race that year. He attended ten events in 1970, starting eight of them, and left the sport after a single race the following year, the 1971 Canadian Grand Prix. He only finished in four of the eleven races he started with a best finish of tenth.[10]
Allen Berg drove for Osella in 1986, competing in nine races. He saw the chequered flag on three occasions with a highest finish of 12th place.[11]
A number of Canadian drivers have competed solely in races held in their own country. Al Pease drove an Eagle Mk1 in three consecutive Canadian Grands Prix between 1967 and 1969. He was unable to finish any of the races and is remembered as the only driver in F1 history to be disqualified from a race for being too slow.[12][13]Bill Brack also competed in three home races, starting with Lotus in 1968 then, in 1969 and 1972, driving a BRM. He was unable to finish in any of the events.[14]Eppie Wietzes competed in two home races separated by more than seven years. He drove a Lotus in 1967 and a Brabham in 1974 but was unable to finish either race.[15]
Lance Stroll would score his first World Championship points at the 2017 Canadian Grand Prix, the 50th anniversary grand prix. He is one of three Canadians to score points at the Canadian Grand Prix, the other two being Jacques Villeneuve and his father Gilles Villeneuve.[21][24]
^Up until 1990, not all points scored by a driver contributed to their final World Championship tally (see list of points scoring systems for more information). Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.
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