PRIXVIEW – Monaco Grand Prix

Round six begins the European season with the most famous and prestigious Grands Prix of them all, the Monaco Grand Prix. Once, Nelson Piquet likened racing round the course to “riding a bicycle around your living room”. Monte Carlo is very much one of the drivers’ favourites, although the racing is often a procession around the circuit

The circuit is the only one to largely follow the layout first introduced in 1929, though a few corners have been modified and added, such as the Novelle/Harbour Chicane and Swimming Pool sections.

There has been criticism that modern cars are double the size that they were a decade ago, making overtaking around the circuit even more difficult. But there might be hope that these smaller cars could make overtaking slightly easier; however the unforgiving streets of Monte Carlo

However, it is a race every driver wants to win; it’s sometimes seen as second to winning the championship, it shows the exceptional drivers from the good.

While it is the home Grand Prix of Charles Leclerc, Monaco is also the de facto home race for most of the grid, including Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, and Lando Norris all of whom have homes in the country.

Monaco is very much a weekend, like a sprint, where every session matters in terms of allowing a street circuit with a few areas for mistakes. It’s a lot tighter, with hardly any room for error, and the circuit setup is unique.

Qualifying is one of the most important of the year, as limited over means grid and track position are key. It also means that pit stops can both win and lose time, while not a tyre-limited race, the advantage of position, but it can also lose races if teams get it right that can mean big rewards.

Monte Carlo is a circuit which favours good mechanical grip and cornering, as there aren’t any real straights. Drivers will be pushing hard throughout the practice sessions on Friday afternoon to get as much time on track to build confidence. It also has the tightest and slowest corner of the season, The Fairmont Hairpin, at just 30MPH.

Sainte Devote (turn one), named after the parish church Sainte-Dévote Chapel the patron saint of Monaco, and the Nouvelle Chicane are possibly the best opportunities to overtake. Although much lower than other circuits, the attempts to overtake can draw your attention.

On paper, in the dry, this should be a one-stop race, given the low tyre wear but teams often gamble on extra stops to try and gain track position, but that comes with extra risks. The limited overtaking opportunities make qualifying the most important of the season; this is no way a modern street circuit as we know. But there might be hope that the smaller and lighter cars there will make it easier than recent years.

Races can be won and lost by the timing of pit stops, although tyres aren’t a limiting factor, the short pit lane and safety cars make this a strategic race rather than one where lap time and overtaking are important. It’s the shortest race in terms of distance, but the longest by number of laps and often runs to the two-hour time limit, because of safety cars and accidents.

Monte Carlo is the only circuit to host a Grand Prix in the world championship era at the same circuit when it has been a round of the championship, barring minor alterations due to building work, second to Monza in the record books by the number of races held. The uniqueness of the tight circuit, slow speeds and metal demands can create odd and surprise winners.

This may be Charles Leclerc’s home race, but he has had a difficult relationship here; he has only scored points twice in his career here. He did, however, take pole in 2021, but crashed out at the end of qualifying and failed to start, and crashed once during a demonstration run at the Historic Grand Prix. It’s often hero or zero for him with his only win being in 2024.

The first Grand Prix was held in 1929, and was won by William Grover-Williams (using the pseudonym “Williams”), driving a works Bugatti Type 35B. It was an invitation-only event, but not all of those who were invited decided to attend the race, which matched very different types of cars, as in Formula Libre.

Over the next decade, before the outbreak of WWII, the beginning of its legendary status began, ranked alongside the British, Belgian, French, Italian and Spanish Grands Prix, many still key races in a season.

The race became a round of the new European Championship in 1936, when stormy weather and a broken oil line led to a series of crashes, eliminating the Mercedes of Chiron, Fagioli, and von Brauchitsch, as well as Bernd Rosemeyer’s Typ C for newcomer Auto Union (now Audi); Rudolf Caracciola, proving the truth of his nickname, Regenmeister (Rainmaster), went on to win. In 1937, von Brauchitsch duelled Caracciola before coming out on top. It was the last prewar Grand Prix at Monaco, for in 1938, the lack of profits for organisers, and demand for nearly £500.

The 1945 and 1947 races were cancelled for financial reasons, the first race organised to F1 regulations predates the world championship in 1948, and the only time a MotoGP’s predecessor held a grand prix in Monaco.

The formation of the world championship in 1950 saw future five-time world champion Juan Manuel Fangio with his first win in a World Championship race, as well as third place for the 51-year-old Louis Chiron, his best result in the World Championship era. However, there was no race in 1951 due to budgetary concerns and a lack of regulations in the sport.

1952 was the first of the two years in which the race was ran as a non-championship race. Since 1955, except for 2020, when it was cancelled due to COVID, the race has been part of the world championship. Apart from the Italian and British Grands Prix, which have been held annually, it is the third-longest-running world Championship rounds.

That year Maurice Trintignant won in Monte Carlo for the first time and Chiron again scored points and at 56 became the oldest driver to compete in a Formula One Grand Prix.

During the 1960s this race was dominated by Graham Hill, he earnt the nickname “Mr Monaco,” and he won five races in the decade. The one which stands out is 1965, after taking pole he avoided a collision on lap 25 with the backmarker, which dropped him to fifth. After setting fastest lap after fastest lap, he still managed to work his way back into the lead of the race. Hill’s teammate Denny Hulme would win in 1967 before Hill took two more wins.

The early 1970s saw the Swimming Pool built, although early on, there would be a ramp over the section. The origins of the chicane we know today were introduced along with the pit lane in 1973. Further changes were made three years later, Sainte Devote corner was made slower and a chicane was placed right before the pit straight.

There was other changes to the circuit too, construction of the pit lane and minor changes through what became known as Rascasse (Turn Seventeen) and Anthony Noghes (Eighteen-Nineteen), replacing the hairpin and creating the pit entry. Minor alterations continue due to building work, but the circuit has largely been unchanged.

The uniqueness of Monte Carlo can throw up surprise results, as well as be won and lost by the timing of pit stops, although tyres aren’t a limiting factor the short pit lane and safety cars make this a strategic race rather than one where lap time and overtaking are important. This can also result in abnormal results, and while the cars are more reliable now, this race, on average has higher retirements, though there have been races recently where no major incidents have happened.

Between 1984 and 1993, this race was dominated by the bitter rivalry between Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, who, between them, took every victory for a decade. 1984 Senna showed great promise in the pouring rain in the Toleman, chasing Prost before the race was abandoned on lap thirty-one.

Senna retired the following year after an engine failure, gifting victory to Prost after a series of accidents in the race. dominated 1986 after starting from pole position, a race where the Nouvelle Chicane had been changed on the grounds of safety. Senna holds the record for the most victories in Monaco, with six, including five consecutive wins between 1989 and 1993, as well as eight podium finishes in ten starts.

His 1987 win was the first time a car with an active suspension had won a Grand Prix. He won this race after Briton Nigel Mansell in a Williams-Honda went out with a broken exhaust. His win was very popular with the people of Monaco, and when he was arrested on the Monday following the race for riding a motorcycle without wearing a helmet, he was released by the officers after they realised who he was.

1992, Mansell nearly broke the McLaren domination of Monaco, but in the closing stage, Mansell suffered a loose wheel nut and was forced into the pits, emerging behind Senna on worn tyres. Mansell, on fresh tyres, set a lap record almost two seconds quicker than Senna’s and closed from 5.2 to 1.9 seconds in only two laps. The pair duelled around Monaco for the final four laps, but Mansell could find no way past, finishing just two-tenths of a second behind the Brazilian

1994 was highly charged with emotion following Senna and Roland Ratzenberger’s deaths at Imola a fortnight earlier, but more safety concerns were raised after Karl Wendlinger had an accident in his Sauber in the tunnel; he went into a coma and was to miss the rest of the season. The German Michael Schumacher took back-to-back wins, but crashed out on the opening lap of a drama-filled 1996 race.

Schumacher’s crash gave Hill’s son Damon the lead before he suffered an engine failure on lap forty. Jean Alesi took the lead but suffered suspension failure twenty laps later. Olivier Panis, who started in fourteenth, moved into the lead and stayed there until the end of the race, being pushed all the way by David Coulthard. It was Panis’s only win, and the last for his Ligier team. Only three cars crossed the finish line, but seven were classified

Schumacher would eventually win the race five times, matching Graham Hill’s record. In 2006, he attracted criticism when, while provisionally holding pole position and with Q3 drawing to a close, he stopped his car at the Rascasse hairpin, blocking the track and obliging competitors to slow down. He was excluded from qualifying.

His title rival Fernando Alonso went on to take a comfortable victory after closest challengers, Kimi Räikkönen and Mark Webber, suffered reliability problems. a podium almost certain for Trulli, his Toyota team were pleased with the new car’s performance but, on lap sevety-two, the Italian had a hydraulic failure that shut the car down on the way up to the Casino, promoting Coulthard to third, who was now on course to take Red Bull’s first podium, and moving Trulli’s teammate, Ralf Schumacher, who had a very quiet Grand Prix, up into the points

Sir Lewis Hamilton’s first win came in wet and changeable conditions in 2008, the McLaren driver took the lead of the race when his rivals made their first stop, and at his second stop, he switched first to the soft tyre. Following the final safety car caused by Nico Rosberg after he hit debris. Hamilton would have to wait eight years until his second win around the Principality when Red Bull messed up the pit stop of Daniel Ricciardo, allowing Hamilton to take victory.

Red Bull and Mercedes dominated the 2010, with Sebastian Vettel winning for Ferrari in 2017. Nico Rosberg took three in a row between 2013 and 2015; his 2015 victory came after a strategic error when Max Verstappen crashed prompting Mercedes to pit Hamilton dropping him to third.

2018, Ricciardo continued his dominant weekend to take his first win at the Monaco Grand Prix. The Australian who has been delivering good pace and performance all weekends drove a great race, controlling the pace.

However, there was some concern in the early stages about the charge in his ERS unit. He controlled the race and managed the problem from the early stages as Vettel and Hamilton began to drop back. The Australian was losing around 20mph to his rivals on the straights, but though Vettel was consistently within touching distance after the Red Bull lost power, he could not squeeze his way past.

Sergio Perez took victory in 2022 after what Leclerc described the race as “a freaking disaster”, after leading the opening stages of the race before losing out when Ferrari weren’t ready for him to stop on lap nineteen. After teammate Carlos Sainz made his stop. At the third start following a red flag, he started on hard tyres, losing out to the Red Bull

2024 saw Leclerc become the second Monégasque to win the race, following Louis Chiron’s ninety-five years earlier. it was the first time the top ten cars finished in their starting order, and there were no successful overtakes

Race & Circuit Guide

Round		06 of 22
Race		Formula 1 Louis Vuitton Grand Prix de Monaco 2026
Venue		Circuit de Monaco, and Monte Carlo, Monaco
Configuration		2015 6th variation
Circuit Length		3.337 km (2.074 mi)
Laps		78
Race Distance		260.286 km (161.734 mi)
Lap Record	Race	01:12.909 (Sir Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 2021)
	Outright	01:09.954 (Lando Norris, McLaren – Mercedes, 2025)
Previous Current Winners		Lewis Hamilton (3) Fernando Alonso (2) Max Verstappen Sergio Perez (1) Charles Leclerc Lando Norris
Most Wins (Drivers)		Ayrton Senna (6)
Most Wins (Constructor)		McLaren (16)
Most Wins (Engine Manufacture)		Mercedes (14)

Fast facts

• Ayrton Senna famously burst onto the F1 scene with a storming performance in the rain-soaked 1984 race and holds the record for most wins at Monaco with six, including five consecutive victories between 1989-1993.
• Monaco holds the all-time record in the modern F1 era for the least number of cars to finish a race. Only four cars saw the chequered flag at Monaco in both 1966 and 1996. Olivier Panis in a Ligier was the unlikely and popular winner of 1996’s race of attrition.
• The hairpin is the slowest corner on the F1 calendar, taken at just 48km/h. The corner has had a number of names through the years. Originally the Station hairpin and then the Lowes hairpin, it’s now named after the hotel which sits on the outside of the track: the Fairmont.
• Monaco is the second smallest country in the world, after the Vatican, with an area of just 2.1 square kilometres. Despite its small size, Monaco has the highest population density of any country, with approximately 39,000 residents.

Event timetable

Session	Local (CEST)	UK (BST)
Friday
P1	13:30-14:30	12:30-13:30
P2	17:00-18:00	16:00-17:00
Saturday
P3	12:30-13:00	11:30-12:30
Qualifying	16:00-17:00	15:00-16:00
Sunday
Race	15:00	14:00

What happened in 2025?

FP1 saw Charles Leclerc go fastest with an 11.964 on the soft tyres, putting himself just over a tenth and a half faster than Max Verstappen.  Lando Norris put his McLaren third going just over a tenth and a half behind Verstappen, and a quarter of a tenth faster than Alex Albon, who continued to show strong pace in the Williams.

FP2 Leclerc was again fastest with an 11.355, putting himself nearly four hundredths ahead of the McLaren of Oscar Piastri, with his teammate Lewis Hamilton a tenth behind. He had gone into the weekend pessimistic about his chances, but this could be the start in the turnaround of the team’s season.

FP3 Leclerc made a clean sweep of practice, setting a 10.953, putting himself just over two and three-quarters of a tenth ahead of Max Verstappen, the two McLarens with Lando Norris a hundredth behind the Red Bull and a tenth and a half ahead of teammate Oscar Piastri.

Qualifying saw Norris beat Leclerc by a tenth and set a new track record on his way to pole. The McLaren driver found a tenth in one of the closest qualifying sessions of the season with a 09.964. Leclerc managed to split the two McLarens after he went just under seven hundredths ahead of Piastri

Norris converted pole into his first win in Monaco, beating Leclerc by three seconds after taking the net lead on lap fifty following his second stop, with a mandatory two-stop race, rejoined in second behind Max Verstappen, who was yet to make his second stop. Leclerc finished three seconds behind the McLaren and half a second ahead of the second of Piastri, to claim his second podium in a row at his home Grand Prix. Leclerc didn’t seem to have the pace to challenge for victory

Pole Position				Lando Norris McLaren – Mercedes 01:09.954
Podium
Po	Name	Nat	Team		Time	Points
1	Lando Norris	GBR	McLaren – Mercedes		01:40:33.843	25
2	Charles Leclerc	MON	Ferrari		+00:03.131	18
3	Oscar Piastri	AUS	McLaren – Mercedes		+00:03.658	15
Fastest Lap	Lando Norris	GBR	McLaren – Mercedes		01:13.221

Championship Standings

	Drivers’ Championship		Constructors Championship
Po	Name	Points	Constructor	Points
1	Andrea ‘Kimi’ Antonelli	131	Mercedes	219
2	George Russell	88	Ferrari	147
3	Charles Leclerc	75	McLaren – Mercedes	106
4	Lewis Hamilton	72	Red Bull – Ford RBPT	57
5	Lando Norris	58	Alpine – Mercedes	35

What to watch for?

Mercedes arrives back in Europe as the favourites, and following a tense battle between George Russell and Kimi Antonelli nearly crashing in Montreal, this could set the scene for the rest of the season. We start the European season with Mercedes upgrades in Montréal, appearing to reestablish them as the championship leaders, but as we saw in Bahrain testing, their car isn’t bulletproof when it comes to reliability.

Russell, as he admitted himself, needs to be fighting back as Antonelli has taken four wins in five races, partly due to him having reliability issues, but he needs to be careful, as getting into your head this weekend will be disastrous, as that can be costly, as that can be a factor in what can be a strategic race.

Ferrari and McLaren appear to be evenly matched, fighting each other to be best of the rest behind Mercedes. If they can beat one or both Mercedes, this could be a huge opportunity, as overtaking is difficult here. Lewis Hamilton appears to have his mojo back and is taking the fight to Charles Leclerc; both have won this race, and it’s whether they can get their strategy right, as that’s so important

Red Bull, we know, is having difficulties, and they are just about hanging on ahead of what is a close midfield, but their upgrades haven’t seen them make progress, and pressure is building, it feels like. But if they can start showing progress towards the top three, that might be enough to convince him to stay.

The FIA has also banned active aerodynamics with safety in mind. There was a risk of seeing cars become too fast at the exit of the Tunnel, given the limited run-off areas. This means that teams will have to run with fixed aerodynamic surfaces and without straight mode.

This means that downforce and drivability remain the main factors this weekend as well as the potential for a few surprises; it could see the gap to Mercedes close as there advantage could be in that area

As we know, Monaco is a very difficult circuit to overtake; however, it could be easier with these smaller, lighter cars. It’s easy to close the gap here, but passing is very difficult, and we have seen races in the past where faster cars have become stuck behind slower cars.

The circuit is the shortest and slowest of the season; getting as close to the barriers without crashing is key to unlocking lap time. We have seen some really tight margins in qualifying, and we normally see in Monaco even tighter margins, as in dry conditions, being a street circuit, which is used overnight by regular traffic evolution isn’t as great as Miami or Montreal.

Drivers need confidence around here to be on the edge, as there are no run off areas you need to be as close to the barriers but not crash, as that’s the best way to unlock the lap time, as qualifying is the most important of the season. It can make or break your weekend around here, as overtaking can be difficult, but moves can be either brilliant or race-ending.

Yellow and red flags, virtual and real safety cars, are almost certain this plays into strategy. On paper, this is a one-stop race, but overtaking being so difficult, it might force some into extra stop to try and overtake but that carries risk of losing out. Monaco is very much a strategic race

2024 vs 2025 Race Data

	P1 Fastest	P2 Fastest	P3 Fastest	Q1 Fastest	Q2 Fastest	Q3 Fastest	Race Time	Fastest Lap
2025	01:11.964	01:11.355	01:10.963	01:11.229	01:10.570	01:09.954	01:40:33.843	01:13.221
Diff	-00.205	+00.077	-00.406	-00.263	-00.175	-00.684	-42:22.311	-01.517
2024	01:12.169	01:11.278	01:11.369	01:11.492	01:10.745	01:10.270	02:23:15.554	01:14.718

2025 Lap time comparison

FP1

FP2

FP3

Q1

Q2

Q3

Race

Team

Fastest Time

Gap

Fastest Time

Gap

Fastest Time

Gap

Fastest Time

Gap

Fastest Time

Gap

Fastest Time

Gap

Race. Time

Gap

Inter

Mercedes

01:12.482

+00.518

01:12.002

+00.647

01:12.013

+01.060

01:11.507

+00.278

Did Not Finish

N/A

01:41:07.687

+ 2 Laps

+00:18.612

Red Bull

01:12.127

+00.163

01:12.068

+00.713

01:11.233

+00.280

01:11.800

+00.571

01:10.875

+00.205

01:10.382

+00.428

01:40:54.415

+00:20.572

+00:16.914

Ferrari

01:11.964

+00.000

01:11.355

+00.000

01:10.963

+00.000

01:11.229

+00.000

01:10.581

+00.011

01:10.063

+00.109

01:40:36.974

+00:03.131

+00:03.131

McLaren

01:12.209

+00.326

01:11.393

+00.058

01:11.247

00.294

01:11.285

+00.056

01:10.570

+00.000

01:09.954

+00.000

01:40:33.843

+00:00.000

+00:00.000

Aston Martin

01:12.727

+00.7633

01:11.890

+00.505

01:12.101

+01.148

01:11.674

+00.445

01:11.182

+00.612

01:10.924

+00.970

01:41:44.238

+ 2 Laps

+00:01.971

RB

01:13.187

+01.225

01:11.829

+00.468

01:11.814

+00.961

01:11.811

+00.582

01:11.040

+00.470

01:10.923

+00.969

01:41:38.925

+ 1 Lap

+00:00.717

Alpine

01:12.669

+00.705

01:12.404

+01.049

01:12.194

+01.247

01:11.984

+00.755

N/A

N/A

01:41:30.957

+ 2 Laps

+00:02.421

Haas

01:13.329

+01.365

01:12.259

+00.904

01:12.489

+01.298

01:11.818

+00.589

01:11.262

+00.692

01:10.942

+00.988

01:41:39.872

+ 1 Lap

+00:20.849

Sauber

01:12.979

+01.015

01:12.294

+00.879

01:12.125

+01.172

01:11.871

+00.642

01:11.586

+01.016

N/A

01:41:42.2667

+ 2 Laps

+00:11.310

Williams

01:12.314

+00.350

01:11.918

+00.535

01:11.688

+00.715

01:11.629

+00.400

01:10.732

+00.162

01:11.213

+01.259

01:40:41.712

+ 2 Laps

+ 1 Lap

Tyres

White Hard (C3)

Yellow Medium (C4)

Red Soft (C5)