TOP 5 information about the Monaco route

If there’s a race fully intertwined with Formula 1, it’s the Monaco Grand Prix! It was first held in 1950, in the very first season of Formula 1, and the winner was Juan Manuel Fangio with Alfa Romeo. He’s been in the championship non-stop since 1955 — except for 2020, when the match wasn’t played because of the pandemic.

Of course, motorsport has reigned in Monaco since 1929, when tobacco maker Anthony Nogges first raced with his friends from the Automobile Club de Monaco.

Every driver who drives in Formula 1 wants to experience the unique glamor that victory in Monaco offers. However, the absolute ruler of the principality is Ayrton Senna with 6 wins, a record that still holds!

Monaco GP

• First Grand Prix: 1950
• Route length: 3,337 km
• Rounds: 78
• Total distance: 260,286 km
• Lap record: Lewis Hamilton, 1:12.909 (2021)
• Winner 2021: Max Ferstappen

TOP 5 info for the Monaco route

1. Overtaking is next to impossible here – the elderly will remember 2003 when there was absolutely no overtaking. The congested traffic on city streets poses a challenge to speed and accuracy for drivers who scrape the barriers with their cars in order to go fast. Nelson Pique described the route beautifully: “Like riding a bike in the living room of your home”! The passage through the tunnel, below the Grand Hotel, stands out when the drivers come out with the sun coming out of the traffic lights at the exit, the passage in front of the famous Casino, the point before the “Pool” and the award ceremony on the steps of the Princely Residence .
2. Monaco is well known to all teams. This is one of the four circuits on the 1950-to-modern Formula 1 calendar, but unlike the other three (Spa, Silverstone, Monza) it hasn’t changed at all over the years. It has the lowest average hourly speed, a DRS zone and few evasive points, making overtaking extremely difficult. This means that the starting line is very likely to decide the winner, as well as an accident bringing out the safety car, which is common in the tight sections of the track and can upset everything.
3. Since the route is open every night, the slippery asphalt is high. Combined with slow speeds, the tires show minimal wear from heat stress, although grip is improving by the day. All of this results in the choice of strategy, with a tire change being the norm in Monaco. The handover window is very wide and the time you pit is likely to be affected by the presence of a safety car, as we said above.
4. The cars make adjustments with large slopes in the spoilers for appropriately maximum aerodynamic performance to achieve the best possible low-speed traction. However, the end result can be determined by the weather, since at this time it is sometimes difficult to predict the weather conditions of the Mediterranean Sea.
5. The new generation of 18-inch tires is expected to make its debut in Monaco. Teams have to learn a lot about their management in these special circumstances. Pirelli has of course chosen the softest erasers. C3 is P Zero white/hard, C4 is P Zero yellow/medium and C5 is P Zero red/soft.

SOURCES: Pirelli, formula1.com