Bogeys at one o'clock

For three of the 22-strong field that started the Canadian Grand Prix at 1 o'clock on Sunday afternoon, this year's 2006 race wasn't just another step towards the culmination of the 2006 calendar. It was also a chance to redeem themselves and make up for previous disappointments at the Montreal circuit.

The first of the three, McLaren's Juan Pablo Montoya, has had an unfortunate history in Canada. A spin ended his debut Canadian performance in 2001, and the Colombian had to watch helplessly as teammate Ralf Schumacher grabbed the win and the glory for Williams. Montoya snatched pole position a year later, before a blown engine ended his race.

He did at least score points in 2003, albeit again behind teammate Schumacher in third. A pair of disqualifications ruined his efforts in 2004 and 2005, the latter when Montoya was in a strong position to win until he ignored a red light at the end of the pitlane.

2006 has been a sub-par year for Montoya and, after qualifying in seventh a full two rows behind teammate Kimi Raikkonen, it looked likely that Canada would merely continue the trend. Montoya had other ideas and came out of the blocks strongly, squeezing his way past Ferrari's Michael Schumacher at the turn 3 chicane on the first lap. With the McLarens looking more competitive than they have all season, could Montoya finally assist Raikkonen in his lonely battle against the Renaults up front?

It took precisely one lap to get the answer. Montoya figured that if Michael Schumacher took to the grass to avoid him at the chicane, Williams' young charger Nico Rosberg would surely do the same. The difference is that Schumacher could not afford a DNF in Canada, Rosberg could. In addition, having spoilt his teammate Mark Webber's qualifying effort on Saturday, Rosberg probably felt obliged to push even harder for Williams during the race.

As Montoya sagely pointed out in an interview after the inevitable collision, the track is not wide enough for two cars at that point. It was an assumption of rank optimism on Montoya's part (and one that unfortunately typifies his career) that Rosberg would obligingly dive off onto the grass verge to make way for him.

The collision didn't pitch Montoya's car into immediate retirement, although it was miraculous that his left front suspension survived the impact with Rosberg's rear tyre. Montoya did have to stop to replace the car's nose, but that didn't matter much. A dozen laps later, he clattered into the Wall of Champions on the pit straight and his race was over.

Montoya remained blissfully nonchalant afterwards, assuring the world that he is 'quite relaxed' about his future prospects. On its own, his Canadian mishap wasn't a major error. However, in the context of Montoya's F1 career, it reinforces the belief that he can't, or won't, adjust his cavalier style. In an era when the championship winner will finish all but one or perhaps two races over the season, frequent collisions are a luxury that no championship-contending driver or team can afford.

For the second of the three bogey-busters, the weekend started promisingly. BMW's third driver, Robert Kubica, had set excellent times during Friday's free practice sessions, building hope that local favourite Jacques Villeneuve might even challenge for a podium place.

In fairness, Villeneuve didn't even need a podium. Any points finish would have sufficed. In his debut F1 season for Williams in 1996, Villeneuve had finished his home Grand Prix in a creditable second place, just four seconds behind winner and teammate Damon Hill.

For the Canadian driver's legions of loyal fans, there had been nothing to celebrate since then. In eight more appearances, driving for three different teams, Villeneuve suffered mechanical failure three times, crashed or spun three times, and finished out of the points in ninth and tenth on the rare occasions when he lasted the full race distance.

BMW's Friday promise did not carry over into Saturday qualifying. Still, the BMW pairing of Villeneuve and Nick Heidfeld started 11th and 13th. Podium finishes were never on but, with the tactical freedom to fuel up the car after qualifying, Villeneuve's 11th place on the grid was arguably better than starting ninth or tenth.

Helped by a typically dreadful start from Honda's Rubens Barrichello and the Rosberg/Montoya collision ahead of him, Villeneuve was already running in the points by the end of lap two. Even being leapfrogged by teammate Heidfeld at the final pitstops wasn't disastrous, as Villeneuve still looked sure to finish eighth and claim the final championship point on offer.

It was perhaps rough justice when Villeneuve came up to lap Ralf Schumacher's painfully slow and grip-less Toyota on lap 58, ran wide onto the dirty edge of the track and skidded helplessly into the wall and retirement. Six years ago, at the Canadian GP of 2000, Villeneuve had attempted a rash overtaking move on David Coulthard's McLaren at the hairpin, overshooting up the inside and shunting Schumacher's Williams into retirement.

Ralf Schumacher had numerous incidents during the race as he struggled for grip © XPB/LAT

There was nothing vengeful about Ralf Schumacher's actions on Sunday. On the contrary, he did everything he could to stay out of Villeneuve's way. The only question was whether Schumacher should have been on the track at all, continuing to race in a car that was outclassed and essentially not drivable. Ironically, Schumacher only lasted another lap before giving up a hopeless cause. It was a lap that might have cost Jacques Villeneuve his last chance to satisfy the home fans and leave Canada with at least some reward.

With two of the three bogey-busters failing to break their Canadian streak of poor results, that left only Renault's Fernando Alonso. The track hasn't been disastrous for the Spanish world champion, but it hasn't been rewarding either. In three previous appearances for Renault, he'd retired twice and ended just off the podium in the processional 2003 finish.

There was little doubt that Alonso would secure the first Canadian podium finish of his career on Sunday. He comes, he sees, he conquers, rinse and repeat. It's the story of 2006, and Canada was to be no exception.

However, the win wasn't nearly as easy as he made it look. After losing a potentially useful buffer when teammate Giancarlo Fisichella jumped and then botched the start, Alonso came under immediate pressure from a fired-up Kimi Raikkonen. The McLaren driver almost had him down the back straight, but Alonso's carefully defensive car positioning was as effective as it had been against Michael Schumacher at Imola 2005.

If the McLaren's clutch hadn't malfunctioned, causing delays at both of Raikkonen's pitstops, Alonso would have been placed under race-long pressure. As it was, the slippery conditions off the racing line posed a challenge to all the drivers. Michael Schumacher brushed the Wall of Champions and ran wide on several occasions, Raikkonen was faring little better, and even Alonso was forced to employ lightning hands at times to maintain tenuous contact with the racing surface.

Just when he'd built enough of a cushion to relax, the inevitable safety car period eradicated Alonso's thirty-second lead and he had it all to do again. But such setbacks are barely distractions for the coolest and most consistent driver in the field, and he duly brought the car home unscathed for his maiden win in Canada.

The amazing aspect of Alonso's 14 GP wins to date is that they have been achieved on 13 different tracks. Bahrain is the only circuit where he has won twice. That is partly due to his meteoric rise to dominance over the past eighteen months, and partly a reflection of his (and Renault's) versatility and ability to win anywhere.

May and June have been particularly rewarding months for Alonso. He has scored his first win on home soil in Spain, maiden triumphs at two of the classic tracks (Monaco and Silverstone) and followed up with his first victory in Canada. It's as if he is systematically going through his CV, ticking off the prerequisites for greatness and filling in all the existing gaps at the first opportunity.

He could mark off another first this weekend with a maiden victory in the US. Of the remaining eight races after that, Alonso has already won before in France, Germany, Hungary and China. That leaves just Turkey, Italy, Japan and Brazil. It's not inconceivable that, four years after securing his first truly competitive drive and just one year after winning his first WDC title, Alonso could have completed the clean sweep of victory at every circuit on the calendar.

The WDC battle may effectively be over but, if Alonso does complete the sweep, it will mark this season as one of the most remarkable and memorable championship campaigns in history.