The sixth round of the 2014 Formula 1 season takes place around the tight and twisty streets of Monte Carlo.
The Monaco Grand Prix is often described as the jewel in F1’s crown. It is the race every fan wants to attend and every driver on the grid wants to win.
With a stunning backdrop, multi-million pound yachts bobbing up and down in the harbour and 22 cars streaming around the Circuit de Monaco, it is the most glamorous and highly anticipated weekend of the F1 season.
Despite having the lowest average speed, it is an incredibly demanding track that requires complete confidence in the car, commitment, precision and concentration. One slip of focus and a driver will find the very unforgiving barriers.
2014's Monaco round will be the 61st running of the prestigious event, which was first included in the Formula 1 world championship in its inaugural season back in 1950. It has been a permanent fixture on the schedule since 1955. Since then, the circuit's safety standards have changed drastically.
However, the actual layout has remained largely the same. Obviously it is a temporary facility, taking six weeks to construct before the weekend and three weeks to dismantle. If the race couldn’t get any more unique, the opening two practice sessions take place on a Thursday. This is to allow the public roads to re-open on Friday.
A lap of the short but challenging 2.075 mile track starts on the start/finish straight, which isn’t straight at all and actually gently curves to the right. This is where the only DRS zone will be positioned.
The first corner, Ste Devote, is a notoriously tricky and slow right-hander. A good exit is crucial here for the run uphill to turn three. A driver must react quickly and direct the car to the limited run-off area if a mistake is made to avoid hitting the wall.
Overtaking is incredibly difficult around the Monte Carlo streets, but a (brave) pass can be completed at Ste Devote. Expect a little bit of chaos here on lap one. Turn one leads on to the flat-out blast through the second bend (a barely-there kink) to Massenet. This long left-hander is swiftly followed by the medium-speed right of Casino Square.
Using as much of the track as possible and getting as close to the barriers without actually touching them is, of course, vital to carry speed through the exit of the corners. A brief burst on the power down the Avenue des Beaux Arts, moving to the right mid-way down the straight to avoid a large bump, leads on to the tight Mirabeau corner.
The famous Fairmont Hairpin (often known by its former name the Loews Hairpin) follows. It is the slowest corner on the F1 calendar and requires full steering lock, which means it is very difficult to run side-by-side with another car through here (although drivers can – just about – overtake).
The double right-hander of Portier is next up and is followed by the iconic tunnel (one of just three in the history of the sport). As well as the changes to visibility due to the lack of light, a car can lose up to 30% of its downforce at this part of the track due to the unique aerodynamic properties of the tunnel.
After the fast right-hander of turn nine and the exit of the tunnel is the heavy braking zone for the Nouvelle Chicane, which is the best overtaking place on the circuit. The harbour-side corner used to be a fast left-right complex but it was modified to its current layout (although kerbing and barrier changes have taken place) in 1986.
It is made up of two parts. The first is a left-right chicane, which is then followed by a right-left section that leads the cars on to the short burst to Tabac. This tight left-hander is tricky to master and is followed by the high-speed Piscine complex. This is made up of a fast left-right chicane and a slower, tighter right-left section.
The 17th corner on the track is La Rascasse, which is where Michael Schumacher famously parked his Ferrari during qualifying for the 2006 race. It is another full-lock right that leads on to the Anthony Noghes corner – named after the organiser of the first Monaco Grand Prix. It is another tight right-hand turn that completes the lap.
The pit entry is just prior to this corner and sometimes catches drivers out when they in the middle of a battle. Unusually, the current pit lane (which debuted in 2004) faces away from the start/finish straight. The exit was also altered to allow cars to feed back out onto the circuit just after the first corner.
Overall, it is a difficult race to negotiate for anyone in the F1 circus, as the paddock is situated over a bridge on the other side of the penultimate corner. It isn’t easy for the support categories either, with the GP2 area situated in a multi-story car park.
Cars will run with a high-downforce set-up for the Monaco Grand Prix and grip levels will increase as the weekend progresses. Around such a demanding circuit, getting as much track time as possible is incredibly important, so hopefully we will be treated to three busy practice sessions. Due to the bumpy nature of the track surface, the ride-heights of the cars will be raised significantly.
As there are plenty of slow corners, stability under braking is crucial. With the new-for-2014 brake-by-wire system, this could make things particularly tricky in 2014. The decreased downforce levels and increased torque this season will make the new F1 machines very challenging to handle around the city streets, meaning we could see plenty of incidents and off-track excursions.
There are very few overtaking opportunities so a strong qualifying performance is very important and strategy plays a big role in deciding the race result - particularly as there is a high probability of safety cars. The two softest tyre compounds will be taken to the race by Pirelli, due to the low-grip track surface and number of slow corners that rely heavily on mechanical grip.
Ayrton Senna is the most successful driver around the track – which is often described as the ultimate test of a racer’s skills – with six wins. "Mr Monaco" Graham Hill registered five victories, as did Michael Schumacher. Fernando Alonso is the only current driver on the grid to win the race multiple times (2006 and 2007). Kimi Raikkonen (2005), Lewis Hamilton (2008), Jenson Button (2009) and Nico Rosberg (2013) have one victory each.
This season, it will most certainly be a battle between the two Mercedes drivers. Rosberg has the better track record, but Hamilton has the momentum and is searching for his fifth consecutive win. We could be set for a very close fight.
The gap to those behind could be decreased in Monaco, partly thanks to the short lap distance. Red Bull Racing proved to have the second fastest car in Spain and I expect the likes of Williams, Force India and Ferrari to be in the mix too.
McLaren lost a bit of pace at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and will be hoping to bounce back, and Lotus will be looking to continue the positive progress and momentum after the team scored its first top 10 result last time out.
I can't wait to see the drivers wrestling the new cars around one of the toughest tracks in the world, it looks set to be a fantastic weekend of racing.
Monaco Grand Prix Fact File
Location: Monte Carlo, Monaco
Track length: 2.075 miles
Direction: Clockwise
Turns: 19
Laps: 78
First race: 1950
Lap record: Michael Schumacher, Ferrari, 2004, 1m14.439
Tyre compounds: Soft and super-soft
2013 race winner: Nico Rosberg, Mercedes
2013 pole position: Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1m13.876
2013 fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing, 1m16.577
Live on: Sky Sports F1 (Highlights BBC)
 |
| © Octane Photographic |
With a stunning backdrop, multi-million pound yachts bobbing up and down in the harbour and 22 cars streaming around the Circuit de Monaco, it is the most glamorous and highly anticipated weekend of the F1 season.
Despite having the lowest average speed, it is an incredibly demanding track that requires complete confidence in the car, commitment, precision and concentration. One slip of focus and a driver will find the very unforgiving barriers.
2014's Monaco round will be the 61st running of the prestigious event, which was first included in the Formula 1 world championship in its inaugural season back in 1950. It has been a permanent fixture on the schedule since 1955. Since then, the circuit's safety standards have changed drastically.
However, the actual layout has remained largely the same. Obviously it is a temporary facility, taking six weeks to construct before the weekend and three weeks to dismantle. If the race couldn’t get any more unique, the opening two practice sessions take place on a Thursday. This is to allow the public roads to re-open on Friday.
 |
| © Octane Photographic |
A lap of the short but challenging 2.075 mile track starts on the start/finish straight, which isn’t straight at all and actually gently curves to the right. This is where the only DRS zone will be positioned.
The first corner, Ste Devote, is a notoriously tricky and slow right-hander. A good exit is crucial here for the run uphill to turn three. A driver must react quickly and direct the car to the limited run-off area if a mistake is made to avoid hitting the wall.
Overtaking is incredibly difficult around the Monte Carlo streets, but a (brave) pass can be completed at Ste Devote. Expect a little bit of chaos here on lap one. Turn one leads on to the flat-out blast through the second bend (a barely-there kink) to Massenet. This long left-hander is swiftly followed by the medium-speed right of Casino Square.
Using as much of the track as possible and getting as close to the barriers without actually touching them is, of course, vital to carry speed through the exit of the corners. A brief burst on the power down the Avenue des Beaux Arts, moving to the right mid-way down the straight to avoid a large bump, leads on to the tight Mirabeau corner.
The famous Fairmont Hairpin (often known by its former name the Loews Hairpin) follows. It is the slowest corner on the F1 calendar and requires full steering lock, which means it is very difficult to run side-by-side with another car through here (although drivers can – just about – overtake).
The double right-hander of Portier is next up and is followed by the iconic tunnel (one of just three in the history of the sport). As well as the changes to visibility due to the lack of light, a car can lose up to 30% of its downforce at this part of the track due to the unique aerodynamic properties of the tunnel.
 |
| © Octane Photographic |
After the fast right-hander of turn nine and the exit of the tunnel is the heavy braking zone for the Nouvelle Chicane, which is the best overtaking place on the circuit. The harbour-side corner used to be a fast left-right complex but it was modified to its current layout (although kerbing and barrier changes have taken place) in 1986.
It is made up of two parts. The first is a left-right chicane, which is then followed by a right-left section that leads the cars on to the short burst to Tabac. This tight left-hander is tricky to master and is followed by the high-speed Piscine complex. This is made up of a fast left-right chicane and a slower, tighter right-left section.
The 17th corner on the track is La Rascasse, which is where Michael Schumacher famously parked his Ferrari during qualifying for the 2006 race. It is another full-lock right that leads on to the Anthony Noghes corner – named after the organiser of the first Monaco Grand Prix. It is another tight right-hand turn that completes the lap.
The pit entry is just prior to this corner and sometimes catches drivers out when they in the middle of a battle. Unusually, the current pit lane (which debuted in 2004) faces away from the start/finish straight. The exit was also altered to allow cars to feed back out onto the circuit just after the first corner.
Overall, it is a difficult race to negotiate for anyone in the F1 circus, as the paddock is situated over a bridge on the other side of the penultimate corner. It isn’t easy for the support categories either, with the GP2 area situated in a multi-story car park.
Cars will run with a high-downforce set-up for the Monaco Grand Prix and grip levels will increase as the weekend progresses. Around such a demanding circuit, getting as much track time as possible is incredibly important, so hopefully we will be treated to three busy practice sessions. Due to the bumpy nature of the track surface, the ride-heights of the cars will be raised significantly.
 |
| © Octane Photographic |
As there are plenty of slow corners, stability under braking is crucial. With the new-for-2014 brake-by-wire system, this could make things particularly tricky in 2014. The decreased downforce levels and increased torque this season will make the new F1 machines very challenging to handle around the city streets, meaning we could see plenty of incidents and off-track excursions.
There are very few overtaking opportunities so a strong qualifying performance is very important and strategy plays a big role in deciding the race result - particularly as there is a high probability of safety cars. The two softest tyre compounds will be taken to the race by Pirelli, due to the low-grip track surface and number of slow corners that rely heavily on mechanical grip.
Ayrton Senna is the most successful driver around the track – which is often described as the ultimate test of a racer’s skills – with six wins. "Mr Monaco" Graham Hill registered five victories, as did Michael Schumacher. Fernando Alonso is the only current driver on the grid to win the race multiple times (2006 and 2007). Kimi Raikkonen (2005), Lewis Hamilton (2008), Jenson Button (2009) and Nico Rosberg (2013) have one victory each.
This season, it will most certainly be a battle between the two Mercedes drivers. Rosberg has the better track record, but Hamilton has the momentum and is searching for his fifth consecutive win. We could be set for a very close fight.
The gap to those behind could be decreased in Monaco, partly thanks to the short lap distance. Red Bull Racing proved to have the second fastest car in Spain and I expect the likes of Williams, Force India and Ferrari to be in the mix too.
McLaren lost a bit of pace at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and will be hoping to bounce back, and Lotus will be looking to continue the positive progress and momentum after the team scored its first top 10 result last time out.
I can't wait to see the drivers wrestling the new cars around one of the toughest tracks in the world, it looks set to be a fantastic weekend of racing.
Monaco Grand Prix Fact File
 |
| © AllF1 |
Location: Monte Carlo, Monaco
Track length: 2.075 miles
Direction: Clockwise
Turns: 19
Laps: 78
First race: 1950
Lap record: Michael Schumacher, Ferrari, 2004, 1m14.439
Tyre compounds: Soft and super-soft
2013 race winner: Nico Rosberg, Mercedes
2013 pole position: Nico Rosberg, Mercedes, 1m13.876
2013 fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing, 1m16.577
Live on: Sky Sports F1 (Highlights BBC)
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