Lewis Hamilton’s recovery drive at Montreal triggered the biggest shake-up in the season’s “Most positions gained” table, jumping from seventh to third overall. Up front, Max Verstappen’s +17 lead remains intact after another net advance from the grid.
By Elena Marsh
The Canadian Grand Prix delivered the clearest ranking swing of the season so far: Lewis Hamilton vaulted four places in the “Most positions gained” standings, from seventh to third, after converting a grid slot of fifth into second at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. That P5-to-P2 climb added to his season total of +6 and, crucially, moved him into the top three behind Max Verstappen (+17) and Liam Lawson (+12).
While the headline movement belonged to Hamilton, Verstappen’s hold on the lead quietly strengthened through consistency rather than chaos. He added another net gain in Montreal by finishing third from sixth on the grid, banking 15 points and keeping the ranking lead at +17 with five races completed. The signal is less about a single spike and more about a developing pattern: the streak continues, and it’s giving the rest less margin for error when they leave points on the table in grid-to-flag terms.
Ferrari also gained depth in the list: Charles Leclerc climbed three places in the ranking, from 16th to 13th, even though his season total is still only +1. The flipside is that Pierre Gasly slipped from 12th to 14th despite sitting on the same +1 total; his Montreal result shows how thin the mid-pack battle is in this metric, even when a driver’s headline race outcome looks solid — Gasly went from 14th on the grid to eighth at the finish and scored 4 points, classified as lapped after 67 laps.
| Driver | Team | Before | After | Δ | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 7 | 3 | +4 | +6 |
| Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 16 | 13 | +3 | +1 |
| Pierre Gasly | Alpine F1 Team | 12 | 14 | -2 | +1 |
With Verstappen still leading on +17 and Lawson second on +12, Hamilton’s jump to third (+6) reframes the chase for the podium places in this category. The gaps are now clearer: one strong recovery can reshuffle the order behind the leader, while the tight cluster on low totals means small swings can cost multiple ranking positions.