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Race Name: Monaco Grand Prix
Circuit Name: Monte Carlo
Circuit Length: 2.08miles/3.340km
Race Length: 78 laps (260.520 Km)
Lap Record: Kimi Raikkonen 1m14.545s

Giancarlo Fisichella's View

"I consider the Monaco Grand Prix to be a home race. I have some wonderful memories tied to this great circuit, including my Italian Formula 3 Championship victory here in 1994 and also some satisfying performances in Formula One, for example second place in 2000. The circuit is difficult and elaborate, but it is also fun. The atmosphere is always charming, with the people who come here and also the city itself, with its location on the harbor, and all the boats that surround it."

Nick Heidfeld's View

"Monaco is one of my favorite circuits, along with Suzuka. It’s a very special race, driving through the city, as it doesn’t give you room for mistakes and on top of that it’s a very special atmosphere every year. From the team’s point of view, we probably have a better chance here than we had in the last couple of races because if you look at history, anything can happen in Monaco. We will try our best and see what happens."

Rubens Barrichello's View

"Monaco is bumpy and incredibly uncomfortable. Never a moment to rest and a constant workout for your arms and legs. A lap can be the biggest thrill of your life but also the bumpiest! Coming over the start line in top gear doing 270kph, you arrive at the braking area for Sainte Devote and the track suddenly narrows. This means that at the start of the race, the whole field gets funneled into the corner. It often means that there are accidents, but that's more of an incentive to start at the front. Carrying through as much speed and momentum as possible through St. Devote, you exit in second gear and blast up the hill.”

“The hill is much steeper than it looks on television, but by the time it levels out, you are doing about 250kph in top gear before you select fourth and turn around the tricky left-handed Beau Rivage at over 200kph, which takes you into Casino Square. In the wet, you really have to be careful here, because it's a bit off camber and the track falls away from you. The barrier comes out a bit on the left as you leave — another thing to watch out for!"

"Coming into Casino Square, the car gets a bit light as you turn right in third gear down the hill, and there's a huge bump which sucks the car down and really unsettles you as you prepare to brake from 210kph for Mirabeau, the second gear right-hand hairpin. Onto the Grand Hotel hairpin; it is a lot harder than it looks because you are braking downhill and if you brake too late, you are in real trouble. First gear and maximum lock to the left is needed.”

"With traction control, accelerating out of the hairpin is easier, but the next two corners at Portier are tricky. With the tunnel coming up — one of the only real overtaking opportunities of the lap, you want to carry good speed through these turns. This double right leads into the cool, dark but very noisy tunnel. There is a kink in the tunnel to the right, but that is flat. Out into the sunlight once again and you approach the Nouvelle Chicane in top gear at around 290kph. Again the braking has to be spot on to slow to 80kph and second gear in about 80 meters."

"Into the final third of the lap. You arrive at Tabac and zip left at 150kph. It is narrow, and as with most corners on the lap, you cannot see the exit so you have to have absolute faith in the car and marshals. Then, the Swimming Pool and the quick left-right before you brake hard for the tighter right and then throw the car immediately left to leave the complex. Three corners from home now and the Rascasse is a double right-hander in first gear right under the lenses of the photographers, and then a quick squirt of the throttle takes you up to Anthony Noghes, the final corner of the lap. Running as close to the wall on the left as you dare, you feel the left hand side of the car ride the small curbs as you arrive at the back of the grid, accelerating up though the gears. If you're quick, you can catch a glimpse of your pit board being hung out on the right, but you haven't got long before you arrive at St. Devote again."

David Coulthard's View

Regarding the track changes: "It looks a lot more open. I'm conscious of not saying it looks easier, just in case I go and drop the ball there. But it does look like it's less challenging, the entry to Rascasse, than it was in the past, which in some respects is a shame because that was one of the difficult spots on the track. But I think generally, it may give us more opportunity for overtaking, then if not overtaking, it should make it easier to lap slower cars during the race, so all in all, I would say it is an improvement."

Juan Pablo Montoya's View

Regarding the track changes: "It's all right, you know. It's a bit different. I'm surprised they still kept the very slow chicane after the swimming pool. I think it could have been a bit quicker. I think, into the last corner, it will probably save a lot of money for the teams because that's the place that everybody crashes.

The Track's F1 History

There is no way I am going to go through all the 47 races here, so I'll concentrate of the last several races.

Traditionally Monaco has always been won by the top driver on the grid (this is the last circuit where the driver matters more than the car). Ironically two former world champions have never won here; Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve. Hill was looking set for a win in 1996 until a rare Renault engine failure ended his race going through the tunnel. Villeneuve, by contrast, seems to have real difficulties in keeping the car out of the barriers here.

In 1997 he and Frentzen proved that overtaking was possible when they lined up on the front of the grid in the pouring rain on slick tires and managed to get shuffled to the back in the first 10 laps! Schumacher is always very good at Monaco. He won there in 1994, 1995, 1997 and dominated the race last year.

In 1998 Hakkinen won despite expectations. Schumacher ended up being hamstrung that year after a real ding dong battle with Alex Wurz. Schumacher finished a long way back in 10th place while Wurz’s Benetton did a very credible impression of a torpedo as it’s suspension failed going through the tunnel at 165mph!

In 1999 Schuey led a Ferrari 1-2 with Irvine dutifully following his team leader home. The scarlet cars were in a different league to everyone else and Schuey racked up his win to become the most successful Ferrari driver ever.

In 2000 suspension trouble led to a non-Schuey win (Schuey won in Monaco in 94, 95, 97, 99 and last year) and it was also the first race at which Schuey ran his new red helmet design in an effort to be easily distinguished from his team mate Barrichello who had been running a similar design. In the race itself Coulthard won easily after Schuey's suspension collapsed. Barrichello was about 20 seconds back but never really looked to threaten.

In 2001 Coulthard achieved his most impressive pole position but McLaren managed to blow his race by having his launch control fail as he attempted to lead away for the warm up lap. In the race himself he was repeatedly held up by Enrique Bernoldi resulting in some ugly scenes after the race involving Bernoldi being muscled by Ron Dennis and Norbert Haug. Schuey went on to score an effortless 1-2 with Barrichello for Ferrari. Eddie Irvine scored Jaguar's first (and so far only) podium with third place.

2002 saw Montoya achieved a great last gasp pole position but DC's launch control managed to get him into the lead ahead of the Colombian. After that Coulthard held of incredible pressure from Michael Schumacher and his engine (which appeared to be on its last legs for much of the race) to claim his second win at Monaco. Last year the race was somewhat overshadowed by an almighty crash in qualifying which ruled Jenson Button out of the race. Button crashed exiting the tunnel at the same lace that left Karl Wendlinger in a coma in 1994. The cockpit protection added to the rules in 1996 did its job, however and Jenson was just a little groggy and fit for the next race. On the Sunday Montoya produced one of the most controlled yet aggressive drives of his career to win from Kimi Raikkonen. Montoya was seen by many to come of age in his win and this set the stage for a concerted push for the title that was to last until the US Grand Prix in September. Kimi came second and Michael Schumacher's Ferrari came third.

The Track

Monaco is the most famous street circuit in the world. The first race was held in the principality in 1929, and the event has always been a part of the F1 calendar. The track at Monaco is famously bumpy, tight and twisty. Monaco is the most famous race of the F1 season and is the only one whose date is not determined by Bernie Ecclestone (it is always held 6 weeks after Ascension Day).

Jim Clark complained about Monaco being unsuitable for contemporary F1 cars in 1966 so it is pretty obvious what the circuit is like now for them! Unlike all the other circuits Monaco is public road for the other 51 weeks of the year (part of Albert Park is nominally public road but it isn’t exactly used much!). The circuit is also unlike other circuits in that it is lined by Armco as opposed to having sand traps. The result of this is that if you make a mistake and go off you will almost certainly damage the car. The circuit is built almost overnight and the close barriers leave little room for error. Overtaking is also very rare and impatience tends to fog drivers' judgment, causing passing attempts at almost impossible places.

The Monaco race is also unique in that the first practice session takes place on Thursday instead of Friday (the circuit turning back into roads on Friday). Unfortunately, contemporary Formula 1 is too large for the principality so the last two teams have to park their third transporter outside the country and wheel their cars in (many of the other teams end up using an underground car park in a similar way to allow more space in the cramped garages!). Staying on the track is vital during the race weekend because switching to the spare car is more of a drag here than at other circuits. This is strange really as the setup for this circuit is pretty obvious — crank the wings up to maximum, raise the ride height of the car and give it lots of acceleration and off you go!

In recent years Monaco races have been dominated by Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher, but the circuit is often the scene of some the more surprising results. Olivier Panis won in 1996 from 14th on the grid for instance.

In the wet, Monaco is a slippery nightmare, but the best drivers thrive on it. Schumacher dominated in 1997, while back in 1984 Ayrton Senna and Stefan Bellof outshone the established stars in their debut seasons.

Last Year's Monaco Grand Prix Results

Circuit Name / Location:  Monaco

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