Autocar’s Favorite Races: 2011 Canadian Grand Prix Car News

You know you’re working in a nice (admittedly remote) office when an email for writers’ favorite errands is sent and all responses arrive in under five minutes.

Spanning the world and a lot of different eras, it’s amazing what memories stand out, whether it’s the individual performance of the pilots or the little details like how a pilot cocked his head in a corner. . There’s even a near-riot in NASCAR on our list.

Let us know which one was your favorite in the comments below.

2011 Canadian Grand Prix

Much of Sky Sports’ coverage of Formula 1 is excellent, especially the dedicated channel that accompanies it. With a dedicated channel, comes the airtime to fill – and with a sport with a history as rich as that of F1, that means old races on repeat.

Those they select are no surprise: Brazil 2008, Europe 1999, Germany 2000, Belgium 1998, all wet / dry races with surprise winners. But there is one that I’ll make a habit of watching every time my late-night channel drops by: Canada 2011.

Otherwise known as the one where Jenson Button came to run in last place early to win, having made five pit stops and another pit trip for a drive through.

It was a remarkable performance from Button, in a race that holds the record for most pit stops by a winner and also the longest race in F1 history at four hours and four minutes after a red flag when the rain really fell.

I remember coinciding with coming home on a Sunday night to listen to it, but then the red flag came up and allowed me to watch the replay live once I got home. It’s Button’s unlikely win that I remember best, but looking back there were so many other subplots and incidents that elevate this race from one of the best to the best.

A deep breath for them: Lewis Hamitlon made a real mistake on the first corner and crashed into Mark Webber. And then he did another a few laps later, hitting his teammate Button, causing a safety car. Button himself crashed into Fernando Alonso, causing the Ferrari driver to retire and replacing Button last.

Then the rain really came, forcing a red flag, followed by more chaos and a muddled order that saw Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher run second until the final stages of a four-way podium battle with Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull’s Webber, and Button. Schumacher would finish fourth, Webber third and Button of course victorious, after forcing Vettel (who was leading all two-lap bars) to make a mistake on the very last lap.