Why Friday's First Practice at F1 Montreal Grand Prix Lasted Just 4 Minutes

The opening practice session for Formula 1’s Canadian Grand Prix was abandoned after a CCTV failure at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Thursday.

The one-hour session began on time but it was stopped after only four minutes when Alpine’s Pierre Gasly suffered a suspected driveshaft failure.

When the session was about to resume the circuit’s CCTV infrastructure failed and consequently the session could not be resumed on safety grounds. Race Control has access to Formula 1’s range of trackside cameras—which were operational—but these do not cover all areas of the circuit, such as run-off areas or behind barriers.

The clock continued to run down in the session while local officials worked on resolving the failure. The back-up system—in place as a contingency measure—also suffered a failure.

Teams and drivers remained in the garages, in the event of a restart, with Williams’ Alexander Albon resorting to playing noughts and crosses with a mechanic.

There was also a separate power failure in the paddock prior to the start of the session which affected some teams, though it was resolved in time for the start of the planned track activity.

Due to the disruption second practice will begin at 4:40 p.m. local time, half an hour earlier than planned. The session will then last for 90 minutes, half an hour longer than originally intended.

Wet weather is forecast for later on Friday while showers are also expected for final practice and qualifying on Saturday.