You need to be sharp in these conditions, says Alonso

Having set the bechmark time in second practice, Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso said that it will be crucial to react quickly in qualifying if conditions remain similarly challenging.

The first session saw the Aston Martin drivers spend the majority of the available time in the garages as they elected to preserve the wet tyres for the rest of the weekend.

Although conditions remained challenging for the second practice, drivers were able to complete some slick-tyre running. Both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll looked strong in FP2 with the Spaniard ending the session on top while the Canadian took third.

Commenting on his opening day in Montreal, Alonso said: “It was a tricky Friday for the entire field due to the weather with not many laps recorded, particularly in FP1.

"The conditions meant the track was never fully wet or fully dry but it could be like this in qualifying and the race so today could provide very useful information for the rest of the weekend.

"If the conditions are the same tomorrow, those that are sharp in qualifying and make the right decision on tyres could gain a big advantage. It’s going to be interesting for those watching but for us as a team it’ll be about getting the tyre calls right and aiming to make the most of that.”

Completing his home race this weekend, Stroll commented: “It was a stop-start day thanks to the variable weather. In FP2 we got to complete a fair amount of driving both on the intermediates and slicks on a drying track, and we learned a few things there and about the new tarmac, which is behaving a little differently to previous years.

"We got some good data on set-up and how the intermediates behave, and that could be crucial for this weekend as there’s more rain forecast. It’s always great to be driving in front of my home crowd and we’ll be aiming to give them something to cheer in qualifying tomorrow.”