Formula 1 returns to its crown jewel event this weekend
Le Mans' BoP secrecy: 'We spend far too much time talking about it'Formula 1 starts the European leg of its 2026 campaign with this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix, which marks round six of the season.
It is the first of 10 consecutive grands prix on the continent, with this middle part of the year being key in shaping the season - with titles sometimes won or lost in Europe. as the favourite for Monaco. The reigning world champion was backed up not much later by his team principal, when Andrea Stella held his media session.
“When we look at the overlay based on the GPS speed, we can see that Ferrari is definitely a competitive chassis in the corners, like in the first sector,” said the Italian. "And it's not only a low-speed sector, but it's also a sector with kerbing. And normally these features tend to be rewarded on a track like Monaco.
” McLaren has a point: anyone looking at the data can see that Ferrari is indeed competitive in low-speed corners, while kerb riding has repeatedly proven to be one of the Scuderia’s strengths in recent years. On top of that, Ferrari believes it will suffer less from its power deficit in the principality.explained how he was able to keep up with the Mercedes-powered cars through the corners, only to see them pull away on the straights.
The comment immediately sparked laughter in the media centre: it was clearly politically motivated, with Ferrari very obviously pushing the ADUO narrative these weeks. As a result, some of the pre-Monaco comments should be taken with a pinch of salt, but Ferrari’s strengths are a separate matter. They mean that Fred Vasseur’s team unquestionably looks like a force to be reckoned with on the streets of Monte Carlo.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes, George Russell, Mercedesdominating the 2026 campaign has been of little surprise to anybody, but what has been a shock is the driver leading the standings:. The 19-year-old sophomore is in the form of his life with four grand prix wins on the bounce, meaning he is 43 points clear of team-mateBut the 28-year-old just hasn’t enjoyed the rub of the green since his win at the Melbourne opener with misfortune in China and Japan, as well as Canada last time out where Russell suffered an engine failure while fighting for the lead.
One could argue the gap is more down to bad luck than Antonelli outperforming the Briton.across the final nine grands prix of last year’s title fight, so it isn’t time to panic just yet for Russell with only five rounds done.
"Trust us to race each other" - The message George Russell and Kimi Antonelli had for Mercedes But, he needs to shift the momentum earlier rather than later, particularly when Mercedes continuing its domination isn’t a guarantee. As explained, Ferrari is arguably the favourite this weekend and if the Scuderia lives up to the hype, then the points swing between Russell and Antonelli shouldn’t be as large as if they were 1-2.
So, it’s unlikely that Russell will retake the favourite tag from Antonelli in Monte Carlo, but one step at a time, and simply beating the youngster in the principality should be enough to start taking back some of the momentum the teenager is carrying.revealed after qualifying in Montreal that Red Bull had not followed his set-up feedback, the Dutchman also highlighted another issue: despite an entirely new set of regulations, the ride issues over bumps and kerbs are still there. When the Monaco Grand Prix came up during his media round with the Dutch press, Verstappen laughed: “Oh yes, that is going to be great.
I think I’m going to order a new back! ” It may seem strange that Red Bull still suffers from this long-standing Achilles’ heel despite the regulatory reset, but Laurent Mekies offered an explanation: “It will probably be quite easy to fix the issues, but make the car slower. So you want to fix the issues and bring lap time.
” Although the previous generation of ground-effect cars, in particular, had to run extremely low and stiff, increasing the ride height still appears to be the most obvious suggestion - but, as Mekies pointed out, it is one that would make the car slower. Like Verstappen, the team principal expressed confidence that the issues can still be solved in 2026 through other means, although the question remains on what timescale. In that respect, Monaco will provide a first test.
With overtaking virtually impossible and everything coming down to qualifying pace, it will be interesting to see how Red Bull manages this weakness, and also how it gives both drivers enough confidence behind the wheel, something that is always worth lap time on a street circuit. Red Bull has clearly made progress with the upgrade package introduced in Miami, but Monaco presents the team with a very different kind of challenge.
Sundays in Monaco are what they are, so even these marginally narrower and lighter cars aren't suddenly going to be able to overtake, and the silly mandatory two-stop from last year is gone too. But, if there is one thing to look forward to this weekend in Monaco, it's qualifying.
Drivers have continuously voiced their concerns over qualifying no longer being a flat out spectacle with the 2026 cars due to the energy management requirements and complex driving techniques required to optimise the lap times, even if the changes applied in Miami have slightly improved the situation. But if there is one circuit on the calendar where qualifying may be restored to its former glory, it’s Monte Carlo.
The stop-start street circuit has plenty of braking zones and corners to recharge the battery and not enough long straights to deploy all that energy.
"I think Monaco is actually going to be one of those races where these cars might be very good," said 2024 winner. "Firstly, we have now lighter cars which for a track like Monaco has its benefits, and I think the electric side is going to be a lot less big in Monaco just because we will be recharging quite a bit with all the corners.
" Not only is Saturday once again going to be the ultimate test of driver and machine, which qualifying is supposed to be, but there should be a lot less complaining by drivers about the 2026 rules, which - while most complaints have merit - will also be refreshing to read and write about.once recalled, with a twinkle in his eye, arranging a date via hand gestures over a series of laps of Monaco with a young lady who had caught his eye in the crowd.
Drivers moaning about being held up by cars on prep laps or cool-down laps are a frequent feature of modern grand prix qualifying, and none more so than around the tight streets of Monaco where there is little room for manoeuvre and one cannot focus on the track ahead and study the mirrors at the same time. This will be the first Monaco Grand Prix since 2014 with more than 20 cars on the grid – and we will likely see pace differentials in the order of that race too.
Nearly six seconds separated polesitterThe car ahead doesn’t even need to be dawdling on the racing line – even the odd fraction of a second can scupper a lap. That can make Q1 all the more fraught, and lead to shock exits such as those ofin 2024 .
Imagine what it was like in the days of a 26-car grid, last seen in 1995. Here, in the era before the 107% rule,Back then, qualifying was split over two one-hour sessions – on Thursday and Saturday – with a driver’s fastest overall counting towards their grid spot. While this theoretically provided more opportunities to avoid traffic, track evolution meant most drivers set their fastest times on Saturday.
Not Inoue, of course – he spun and stalled at the end of the Thursday session, then was hit by the safety car as his Footwork was towed away. You can argue, then, that drivers have rarely had it so good in Monaco as they do today, especially with GPS monitoring.
As 1982opined a few years ago, “There used to be 26 drivers out there in the old days, and half of them were slow – not just half a dozen…”Question of the week: Should Mercedes interfere in George Russell and Kimi Antonelli’s battle? LIVE: F1 Canadian Grand Prix updates - Kimi Antonelli leads as George Russell, Lando Norris retireFrom Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you.
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