SimHQ.com - Motorsports Zone - Preview: 2004 Monaco Grand Prix

I will be taking the course during the 2004 season using EA's F1 Challenge '99-'02. To make it more contemporary I will be applying Ralph Hummerich's excellent carset to it as soon as it is ready. I have chosen Ralph's carset as, in addition to him being a thoroughly top notch person, in my opinion his carsets are the best available and it is an honor for SimHQ to have an exclusive WIP version to be able to use for its screenshots. Many thanks Ralph! If you wish to try his 2003 add on please use this link to his page.

A Lap of Monaco

Going over the start/finish line you approach the first corner — a right hander called Saint Devote. There is usually some form of coming together at the start here. In 1994 Hakkinen punted Hill’s Williams off on the first lap while the following year Alesi, Coulthard and Berger proved that it was impossible to get three cars around the same corner! Normally Ste Devote is taken in 2nd gear at about 55mph.

Accelerating up the hill you get up to just over 160mph in top gear before braking for Massenet. This left hander is taken at around 80mph in 3rd gear and is often a good chance to see how sideways the drivers can get the car before flicking the car right through Casino Square (taken a little slower — say 70mph).

You then accelerate down the hill (avoiding the manhole cover) up to 130mph before breaking again for Mirabeau. It was down this hill that Johnny Herbert did a masterful job of keeping his suspension (and himself) in one piece when his suspension failed last year. Mirabeau is a tight right hander and is taken at about 50mph in 2nd.

You then briefly accelerate before the tightest corner on the calendar, the Lowes Hairpin (it was actually renamed a couple of years ago but everyone still calls it the Lowes Hairpin!). This corner is difficult to get around in a road car so is almost impossible to get around in a grand prix car. Ironically it is probably the best place to overtake on the circuit with Eddie Irvine managing to bare past (or through) someone there every year! It is a right hander taken at 30mph.

You carry on down the hill before the double right hander at Portier. Both of these are taken at about 50 mph and it is very easy to get it wrong here in the wet (as Schumacher did in 1996).

Coming out of Portier you accelerate into the tunnel. The tunnel is always a problem as the variation in light affects the driver when it is sunny and the dry track inside the tunnel can cause problems on a damp track. Either way it is the fastest part of the track and you can get up to 170mph before hitting the next braking zone.

This is for the Novelle Chicane. This was altered after Karl Wendlinger had a big accident there in his Sauber in 1994. It is a right/left and was the scene of Hill’s overly ambitious overtaking more on Ralf Schumacher last year as well as Coulthard’s engine failure in 1998 and Hill’s in 1996.

After going through the chicane (which is taken at about 40mph in 2nd) you then race along the seafront. Despite being so close to the water, only two drivers have ended up going for a swim during the race and both were unharmed!

Braking into the next turn, Tabac, can be interesting as the track is usually slippery due to the fish shop washing their fish there during the rest of the year — I am not sure but I think this closed last year so the drivers may find extra grip this year! Tabac is one of the faster corners on the circuit and is taken at 90mph in 3rd gear.

You then accelerate again up around the swimming pool complex. This consists of a short straight, a left and right “kink” another short straight and a right and left “kink”. The first braking zone can be interesting in the wet as it is over a zebra crossing!

You then accelerate back up to about 100mph before braking for Le Rascasse a very tight (about 35mph in 2nd) right hander that leads past the pit entrance and through a second right hander that leads back onto the main straight.

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