George Russell gave Mercedes their first pole position this season at the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix on Saturday with the identical fastest time to champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull. The British driver clocked 1 minute 12 seconds – exactly the same time as Verstappen. Russell, however, took pole because he set the time first. Lando Norris of McLaren completed the top three, only 0.021 second off the pace. This is Russell’s first pole position since the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix and third of his career. For Mercedes, it’s their best qualifying result since Lewis Hamilton took pole at the…