2024 Monaco Grand Prix 
Circuit de Monaco | Monte Carlo | Monaco | Sunday, 26 May
2024 F1 Season - Round 8 (Grand Prix 8 of 24)
Last year saw rain in Monaco cause a lot of chaos in the second half of the race, turning what is often a fairly processional race through the narrow streets of the Principality, on it’s head. Multiple contacts from the first lap. Ferrari applied a late double stack pit strategy for Inters which cost Leclerc the podium. Sainz smacked into Ocon, bitched about Ferrari’s pit strategy, and spun twice. Stroll had problems after his front wing got lodged under is wheels. Even mighty Max picked up a bit of contact but managed to save his car from retirement. Ocon and Alpine had their best result for the year (and since!) All told, not a totally boring race:
Just the Facts
- First Grand Prix – 1950
- Track Length – 3.337km
- Lap Record – 1:12.909, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 2021
- Most Poles – Ayrton Senna (5)
- Most Wins – Ayrton Senna (6)
- Pole to Turn 1 – 142 metres
- Overtakes in 2023 – 36
- Safety Car Probability – 57%
- Virtual Safety Car Probability – 43%
- Pit Stop Time Loss – 19.2 seconds
Last Race (2023)
- Pole Position: Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT, 1:11.365
- Fastest Race Lap: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 1:15.650
2023 Podium
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT
- Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Aramco-Mercedes
- Esteban Ocon, Alpine-Renault
Last Five Monaco GP Pole-sitters
- 2023 – Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- 2022 – Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- 2021 – Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- 2019 – Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
- 2018 – Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull)
Last Five Monaco GP Winners
- 2023 – Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- 2022 – Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
- 2021 – Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- 2019 – Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
- 2018 – Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull)
The Schedule
Decent afternoon and early evening times for the action on circuit this weekend:
The Circuit
Jolyon Palmer, former Renault F1 driver: Monaco is a beautiful circuit and a true driver’s track. It feels like madness in an F1 car; even in comparison to other street circuits it’s so narrow, the roads are cambered, it’s tight and twisty and there are challenges everywhere…
I love coming out of Sainte Devote, Turn 1, which is a challenge in its own right. It’s so steep at the exit, you’re looking at the sky going to Massenet and Casino. You’ve got to hug the inside line at Massenet, otherwise you skittle into the barriers on the outside.
The hairpin is a little bit more straightforward, but you feel like you’re in there for an eternity, bouncing your way through as it’s all really bumpy.
You flash out of the tunnel and pick a braking point for the chicane, where you’ve got to get as close as you can to the armco on the left-hand side. Occasionally you see people getting too greedy and just nibbling it, causing a puncture and a bit of damage.
You also see so many people going straight through the chicane, especially early on in practice, just trying to find the right braking point. It’s one of the few places where you have a little bit of room for error, so people will take it the fastest.
The Weather Forecast
As it stands, there is a threat of some showers hitting the track on Friday and Saturday, potentially causing some drama in qualifying, but conditions are expected to be pleasant and sunny for the race.
The Tyres
Pirelli have chosen their softest three compounds – the C3, C4 and C5 – for this weekend’s action in Monaco, with the tyre manufacturer noting that the track “has a particularly smooth surface, given it is in daily use for road cars, and so the tyres must provide as much grip as possible”.
Indeed, the tyres experience some of the lowest forces seen across the season on Monte Carlo’s streets, thanks to a very low average speed around the 3.337-kilometre venue, and just under a third of the lap being spent at full throttle.
But there will still be stress to consider in the traction zones, with 78 twisting and turning laps to get through on Sunday, while graining can also cause some problems, particularly over the first couple of days when the track is rubbering in.
As for strategy, the only viable option is a one-stop, as drivers extend their opening stints and look to gain from any potential Safety Car periods – four of the last seven races in the Principality having been neutralised.
Prior to the race, qualifying is even more important than usual, with overtaking extremely difficult around the barrier-lined circuit, meaning track position is often maintained unless reliability issues or the aforementioned Safety Car make an appearance.
More News and Info
Stay on top of it all the news over on the official F1 site: Monaco Grand Prix 2024 - F1 Race (formula1.com)
