However, it was the Mercedes driver who took pole position, his second in F1 after his first in Hungary in 2022.
It was the first time fans had witnessed something like this since 1997.
What happens if two F1 drivers record the same time in qualifying?
Article 39.4, paragraph 4, i.e. (iv) of the FIA F1 Sporting Regulations states that “If two or more drivers record the same time in Q1, Q2, Q3, or SQ1, SQ2, SQ3, priority will be given to the driver who recorded it first.”
In other words, the driver who sets a time before the other drivers is in the lead.
In Canada, Russell set the fastest time, then was matched by Verstappen.
Indeed, the British driver had another chance but was unable to improve on his time, leaving him and Verstappen in the bizarre situation of both finishing with a lap time of 1m12.000s.
Last time this happened
Michael Schumacher, Jacques Villeneuve and Heinz-Harald Frentzen all set the exact same time of 1 minute 21.072 seconds during qualifying for the 1997 European Grand Prix.
Pole position went to Villeneuve, who crossed the line first, and the next day, after a famous dispute with Schumacher, Villeneuve went on to win the World Championship.
Because F1 qualifying at the time was very different with a one-hour session format, Villeneuve recorded a time 15 minutes faster than Schumacher, and Frentzen recorded an even slower time than Schumacher.
Have two F1 drivers ever tied for the most points in a race?
No, never once in a Formula 1 race have two drivers reach the finish line tied for first place.
The smallest gap at the end of a race was recorded at the 2002 United States Grand Prix, when Ferrari achieved a one-two finish and Rubens Barrichello took the chequered flag just 0.011 seconds ahead of team-mate Schumacher.