The Canadian Grand Prix is a race that we've sorely missed being on our screens in the last few years. The race around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is a fan-favourite and one that was ever-present since 1978.
Wet races in Canada aren't rare, with rain heavily affecting the races in 2011 and 1989. You'll have to adapt your dry setup for the rainy conditions when the skies cloud over in F1 2021. Here's the best that we found!
Aerodynamics
Despite Canada's multiple long straights, you'll need very high downforce for the wet weather in Montreal. This is thanks to the low-grip surface and the need for as much mechanical grip as possible in the slow chicanes. We went with a wing angle of 9 on the front wing and 10 on the rear wing to help keep the car on track.
Transmission
In wet conditions, you need an open transmission to allow for smooth transmission of power. A more locked differential will give you more grip, but it will increase the risk of spinning the rear tyres upon acceleration. We found that 65% on throttle and 50% off throttle differential is best.
Suspension Geometry
Tyre wear in Canada isn't a concern, even in dry conditions. So, on the very durable wet tyres, there's even less worry, so your suspension geometry should reflect this. The smaller the camber and toe angles, the more grip you have at your disposal but the faster your Pirellis run out of grip.
We opted for full left toe angles of 0.05 on the front and 0.20 on the rear. We didn't go as adventurous for the cambers, but still full right -2.50 on the front. For the rear, we went closer to the centre with -1.70.
Suspension
You'll have to use the kerbs in Canada if you're to be fast in Montreal. The kerbs at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve aren't the harshest on the calendar, but you'll still need soft and high suspension if you're to avoid spinning out in the wet conditions when using them.
You suspension springs need to be on the soft side and we discovered 3 on the front and 5 on the rear to be ideal. The anti-roll bar has to be similarly soft, 2 on the front and 4 on the rear. This is to prevent oversteer mid-corner, which is particularly prevalent when changing lock during the chicanes.
Despite the Canadian circuit being very flat, your ride height still needs to be fairly tall to ride the kerbs. 5 ride height on the front and 6 on the rear allows you to go overcomfortably while not compromising your straight-line speed too much.
Brakes
The brakes take a hammering around Canada, even in the wet. Major stops into Turns 1, 8, 10, and 12 mean that brake failures are a common occurrence. You'll have to get the pressure up, we opted for 92%. As for the bias, 55% towards the front helps prevent front lock-ups.
Tyres
Like with the suspension geometry, you can go high with the pressures of the tyres. This is because you want to retain heat in them down the numerous long straights in Canada. The fronts need to be protected a bit though, so around 21.8 psi on the front left and right is around correct.
For the rears, it's a different story, and you'll need to go near to the maximum at around 23.1 psi.