Mercedes' Russell took pole position for the second year in a row with Red Bull's Verstappen, who is chasing a fourth successive Canadian victory, second fastest.

The race will be the first since the Formula One rivals collided in Spain, an incident that left Verstappen one penalty point away from a mandatory ban.

Asked about "the penalty points thing" at a post-qualifying press conference, Verstappen, who is third in the championship with Russell fourth, did not hold back.

"I don’t need to hear it again. It’s really pissing me off. I mean, you were speaking about it on Thursday. It’s such a waste of time. It’s very childish," he said.

"So, that’s why I also don’t want to say too much because it’s really annoying, this world that we live in."

Verstappen acknowledged after Spain that he made a mistake in driving into Russell, an incident stemming from frustration at having to hand back a place, but the topic has followed him to Canada.

--Reuters--