The Magic of Monaco

Monaco is different; Monaco is special; Monaco is a weekend like no other. Ignore the cynics: this is a still the highlight of the F1 calendar.

Even

the

approach

into

Monaco

dramatic.

Dropping

down

off

the

Alpes

Maritimes

onto

one

the

three

corniche

roads,

the

Mediterranean

fills

the

view,

turquoise

waters

dotted

with

boats

that,

the

start

the

week,

are

mostly

heading

the

same

direction

you,

towards

the

Principality

twisting

around

the

lower

slopes

the

precipice.

From

distance,

looks

preposterous

place

hold

major

international

motor

race.

magical

sight.

The Iconic Monaco Harbour

It’s become customary in recent years to discuss the Monaco Grand Prix with caveats. Still the jewel in F1’s crown – but perhaps that crown is a little tarnished. Other circuits can deliver the glamour and razzmatazz – but they can deliver an exciting race too. Absent a Safety Car or a shower, Monaco has a tendency towards the processional: the cars are simply too fast, and too wide to allow genuine wheel-to-wheel racing. But, in many respects, that doesn’t – or shouldn’t – matter. The beauty of the F1 calendar, the thing which sets it apart from other series, is the variety. Building a car that works well in red-hot Spain and at single-figures COTA, at high-speed Monza and twisty, intricate Singapore, is the fullest measure of an engineering challenge. Getting the best out of the car and the team in Monaco is no less challenging because the grand prix has the heaviest qualifying bias – if anything, having to get it incredibly right on Saturday afternoon makes it more challenging.

Drivers, of course, love it. Or, at least, the best ones do. The whole lap threads the eye of the needle, running within millimetres (and less) of the barriers at every corner, with not a moment to rest or relax on any lap, across the whole weekend. It’s the supreme challenge of car control, requiring ultimate focus – but the sheer madness of the test has been known to leave drivers – some of them quite senior drivers – giggling.

Part of the allure of Monaco is writing your own chapter in a long, long story. The race was first held here in 1929. The track has changed since then – but it hasn’t changed much. The backdrop to the pictures taken this year, as the cars flash past the Hôtel de Paris, through Mirabeau and Loews’ Hairpin, and onwards will be the same as the ones of goggled men in duster jackets, driving cars made by Bugatti and Delage: the pretty chapel of Sainte-Dévote, Massenet, Mirabeaus Haute and Bas, Portier, Tabac are the same as they ever were; the drivers following in the wheel-tracks of Hill, Senna and Schumacher.

We’ve won this race five times in the last 11 years. One for Seb, two for Mark, one for Daniel, and last year for Max. Max is the only one of those who didn’t start from P1 – though that’s a little bit of a false statistic, given he was infact the first car on the grid last year in P2 (Polesitter Leclerc failed to make the start, should you need a reminder). Get into Ste. Devote first, and from there on in it’s yours to lose – but that simply ratchets up the tension.

The Team Celebrate Daniel Ricciardo's Win Back In 2018

The slightest slip, a miscommunication, a little bit of bad luck with a flag, and it can be snatched away. We’ve been there in the past and it isn’t nice – but the joy of crossing the line first is without compare.

Though even if Sunday’s race is processional, that doesn’t particularly detract from the spectacle. The appeal of the race and the appeal of the event have become divorced in recent years. Part of that is down to the location. Somerset Maugham’s ‘sunny place for shady people’ epigram still has some currency: the Casino, the sheer opulence, the battleship-sized yachts squatting rather than bobbing in Port Hercule, all add to the lustre of the Monaco Grand Prix – but primarily it’s all about the fans. This is the slowest race on the calendar but it feels like the fastest because nowhere else do the grandstands get quite this close to the action.

There’s an enormous concentration of people. The grand prix doesn’t so much take over Monaco as much as it becomes Monaco, tens of thousands of fans funnelling down into the postage stamp-sized principality, thronging the narrow streets, filling the cafes and pizzerias, spilling out onto the circuit itself. It has a vibe that really is unmatched. For the great things venues like Singapore and Miami have done, it’s still perfectly possible to walk around those places and not know a grand prix is taking place: Monaco isn’t like that at all. In the week of the grand prix, the town only exists for the grand prix – and it's the only venue where that’s the case.

Monaco Will Always Be A Fan Favourite

That doesn’t make it an easier place in which to work. Street races tend to take rather more effort than permanent tracks, and Monaco takes more effort than any other. It’s ironic to say it, given we’re into the 11th decade of the Monaco Grand Prix, but this place just isn’t built for a motor race. Just getting the motorhomes in is a logistical challenge that requires all of the teams involved to cooperate and coordinate to an unusually high degree. We, of course, watch the process from the luxury of our floating Energy Station. It’s been a feature of the grand prix since 2005, so much so these days it passes almost unremarked – but constructing it and getting it into the harbour is a maritime marvel all of its own. The Energy Station crew will, of course, be rushed off their feet for four days straight, while the garage crew will cover more miles this weekend than at any other: nothing – whether that’s spare parts or a hot meal – is close to hand.

But, you wouldn’t want it any other way. The walk to work in the morning takes you through history; you’re working in the beating heart of the motorsport world, listening to tunes blasting out of the Rascasse, looking out over the pitlane parapet at packed grandstands around the Swimming Pool, and you’re preparing a car that will drive at absurdly high speeds through tiny streets, around some of the most expensive real estate on the planet. So really, what’s not to love?

Red

Bull

Monaco

The Magic Of Monaco Gallery

Red Bull Have Won This Race Five Times In The Last 11 Years

The Iconic Monaco Harbour

Full Send Around The Historic Track

The Energy Station Is Back For The First Time Since 2019

Checo Hits The Track In RB16B

Max In The Monaco Tunnel

Max Celebrates His First Monaco Win

Another Monaco Trophy For The Team