Monaco GP Thread - Sponsored by Nytol Sleeping Pills - Contains Practice/Qualifying/Race Spoilers

[Fernando]

First topic message reminder :

Round six of the 2013 FIA Formula One World Championship will see the teams do battle around the tight and twisting streets of Monaco for a race that cranks up G-forces of a different kind – meaning there will be plenty of glitz and glamour on show as well as no small amount of grit and determination on the part of the drivers at a track that provides them with one of the season’s toughest tests.

The track may have the slowest average speed of any circuit on the calendar but the proximity of the barriers and the lack of run-off areas means it requires absolute focus and total commitment, especially as early in the weekend the surface is usually very slippery. The winding nature of the track means the teams will bring their highest downforce aero configurations and tyre manufacturer Pirelli will supply its soft and supersoft tyres in order to maximise mechanical grip.

Beyond the need for downforce and good traction, the Monaco Grand Prix is all about driver skill and this, coupled with the race’s history, makes it the one every racer wants to win. In recent years that honour has gone to those wearing the colours of Red Bull Racing, with Mark Webber winning in 2010 and last year and Sebastian Vettel victorious in 2011.

Whether that run will continue is anyone’s guess. Pole position is of major importance in Monaco, with all but two of the last 10 races being won from the front of the grid. On that score, Mercedes look to be the form team, with Nico Rosberg on pole at the last two races and Lewis Hamilton in P1 at the start in China. However, Fernando Alonso, energised by his recent home win at the Spanish Grand Prix, will undoubtedly fancy his chances of a third Monaco victory, while this season’s Mr Consistency, Kimi Raikkonen, will no doubt be in the mix again come Sunday. In truth, on a circuit where the influence of car superiority is significantly reduced, any one of a host of drivers could win F1’s most glittering prize.

Facts

This will be the 71st Monaco Grand Prix, the race stretching all the way back to 1929. It is the 60th Formula One race here, with the principality making its debut on the first Formula One calendar in 1950. It then took a break until 1955 but has featured on the calendar every year since.

Olivier Panis won the 1996 race from 14th on the grid, the lowest position from which victory has been scored here since Formula One began. In a race characterised by wet weather, crashes and mechanical failures, just four of the 21 who started the race were still racing when the chequered flag came out on lap 75 – Panis, David Coulthard, Johnny Herbert. Fourth-placed Heinz Harald-Frentzen was in the pits when the flag fell.

That 1996 win was Panis’ first and last in Formula One. Eight other drivers have recorded maiden F1 wins here: Juan Manuel Fangio (1950), Maurice Trintignant (1955), Jack Brabham (1959), Denny Hulme (1967), Jean-Pierre Beltoise (1972), Patrick Depailler (1978), Riccardo Patrese (1982), and Jarno Trulli (2004). Only Beltoise, Panis and Trulli never won again.

A high grid position is a major advantage here. Since 1950 the race has only been won 10 times from a starting position worse than third place. From third on the grid the race has also been won 10 times since 1950. However, only three of those have come since the turn of the century – Coulthard in 2000, Juan Pablo Montoya in ’03, and Lewis Hamilton in ’08.

The driver starting second has won 13 times since 1950, but only two of those have come since 2000 – Michael Schumacher in 2001 and Coulthard in 2002.

The race has been won from the front of the grid 26 times since 1950. Since 2000, eight winners have started in P1.

McLaren have the most victories at the Monaco race (15). The second most successful team at the track is Ferrari with eight, while Lotus have clinched seven, including their maiden victory in 1960.

Of the current drivers only Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber have multiple wins here. Both have two victories (Alonso in ’06 and ’07 and Webber in ’10 and ’12). If Alonso wins for Ferrari this year he will be the first driver in F1 history to win here with three different teams. His first victory was with Renault and his second came with McLaren.

Of the 2013 rookies only Williams’ Valtteri Bottas has never raced here in single seaters. Marussia’s Jules Bianchi debuted here in Formula Renault 3.5 in 2009 and raced here in GP2 in 2010-’11. Caterham’s Giedo van der Garde raced here in F3 Euro Series in 2005. He also raced here in Formula Renault 3.5 (2007-’08) and in GP2 (’09-’12). Marussia’s Max Chilton made his Monaco debut in Formula Renault 3.5 in 2009 and raced in GP2 in 2010-’12. Sauber’s Esteban Gutierrez first raced here in GP2 in 2011 and again last year

Source:RaceDepartment

[Guest]

Basically they agreed a test could take place on safety regulations which over rule sporting regulations. Of course its an advantage for Mercedes, just further evidence of bonkers decision making. Red bull are thinking about protesting and must feel like the world is against them after their domination of recent years. FIA/Pirelli approved this test so can't see this going any further

[Bull]

Hoping Ferrari can gain some big points in this race but Massa at the back that looks unlikely, i think Rosberg is going to take the win also well done to Van Der Garde for qualifying really well though i think if he Bianchi was part of qualifying then he might of been up there as well.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Martin Brundle asking random women what's up on the grid

[GSC]

The Mercedes make it into the first corner 1 and 2.

Wake me up when we get to pit stops

[GSC]

This is making Barcelona look like Spa at the moment.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Has there actually been an overtake yet?

[GSC]

Di Resta on Bianchi I think.

Forget about the tyres, drop the non event that is the Monaco GP

[sportform]

It will be interesting to see if Raikkonen can go to the end now. I don't think he can.

[sportform]

"Sponsored by Nytol" - brilliant!

Monaco: stunning venue but not renowned for enthralling races.

I always find Monaco one of the more exciting races. Cars are close together. Overtaking isn't easy but can be done if a driver wants it bad enough.

Definitely better than most races. Especially those now where DRS makes passing so boringly easy.

[GSC]

Massa repeats his P3 crash and brings out a safety car.

The 2 RBs jump Hamilton in the stops.

This is a seriously crap race. Like every Monaco race

[mystiroakey]

perez is making it interesting..

Starting to rate him..

[Uryu Ishida]

red flag!

that was a huge one!

[mystiroakey]

ARrggg.

Monaco is one messy track!

[Uryu Ishida]

think Perez will be allowed past Fernando?

[Guest]

So Hamiltons been done by the safety car n its a big procession. Huge crash, once again bringing up the future of this track. Perez/Hamilton trying to make it exciting but there actions/aggressive moves will be punished long term by these tyres at the end.

This race is basically a training warm up exercise for these drivers. Anyone could drive this slow, I mean a caterham producing fastest laps, ridiculous

[SteveG]

Alonso to give place back.

[Uryu Ishida]

think Perez will be allowed past Fernando?

ok...FIA says he will give it up....interesting

[SteveG]

Hamilton should have used new primes and waited till Webber was weaker. Could now fall victim to Kimi and Perez later.

[SteveG]

...and just when Webber loses the benefit of DRS to give Hami an opportunity they disable it. Couldnt make it up.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Grosjean #headsgone

[GSC]

Something very off about Alonso.

This race is making me want to revise

[mystiroakey]

this is the most annoying race i have ever seen!

thank gawd for cricket

[SteveG]

Perez was alway gonna run outa luck diving down the inside at the chicane.

[Uryu Ishida]

how did Kimi steal 10th????

[Guest]

Shocking race. Rosberg deserved the win but it was gifted really with Hamilton`s troubles and Vettel`s acceptance of second from half way through the race. Tyres are just horrific, why should a driver who wants to be aggressive and entertain be ultimately punished later on.

Basically a great day for Vettel......typical. Well done Kimi for 10th, record is still on

[mystiroakey]

A very annoying race!

Dont know if its just me or perhaps bias- but he seems the unluckiest driver over the past year and bit of a season..

[dyrewolfe]

Have to say I think it was a case of karma for Sergio after trying that move on Kimi. I know he left the door open a fraction, but it really wasn't on.

What the hell did Kimi do to get back into 10th over those last few laps? Did his car suddenly spout wings? Brilliant effort for scant reward.

Congrats to Nico Rosberg, emulating his dad's achievement of 30 years ago. Controlled the race perfectly from start to finish and managed the restarts immaculately.

Unlucky for Lewis - that first pit stop really cost him. He may have been better off waiting until nearer the end to have a go at Webber, but a good effort nonetheless.

Red Bull showed they were at least equal to Mercedes on race pace. Probably could have gone faster, as shown by Vettel's fastest lap, but they also needed to manage their tyres to an extent, so on that basis there probably wasn't much between them.

A weekend to forget for Lotus. Grosjean suffering brain fade and collecting a Toro Rosso and Kimi being hit by Sergio Perez, forcing another pit stop, dropping him well out of the points...only a supreme effort kept his point scoring record intact.

McLaren looked surprisingly competitive, with Perez having a very busy race, pulling a superb overtake on Button...just a shame he ruined his race by colliding with Raikkonen. Button looked solid if unspectacular...a sure but steady race earning him a decent haul of points, finishing 6th.

Ferrari will probably be feeling much the same as Lotus. Massa's race ending prematurely with an identical crash to the one that ended his Final Practice session. Very strange... Alonso looked strong and racy for much of the race, but faded towards the end, finishing 7th.

Very good race for Force India...Sutil having a brilliant race, making the Loews hairpin his own, schooling both Button and Alonso. Eventually finished a way behind Hamilton in 5th. Disappointing race for Di Resta, but at least he finished in the points.

In summary, a total snoozefest until the first Safety Car, some 24 laps in. Got even more interesting after the re-start, following the Chilton-Maldonado accident.

[SteveG]

Hamilton lost at least second place by driving too slow at the end of the first stint - unless he was deliberately hanging back. Both drivers were asked to pick up the pace just before the SC came out. Rossberg did, Hamilton didnt as the gap grew above 3 seconds. Mind after saying that the Bulls went round pretty sharpish under a delta after being released.
This years tyres are definately curtailing Hami's race pace - had to also give up on Webber 3 laps out. He simply must find a way of getting more from them.

[Guest]

Good analysis but once again its Vettel, who ultimately is the winner and that's the most important part. Watching that first half of the race was so painful. F1 races are primarily beginning and end, that's all. The middle sections are a non-entity of racing or action. Paid millions to drive at 75℅ is ridiculous and then the drivers that do want to showcase racing and be aggressive in trying to entertain are eventually punished for those very actions, as Hamilton & Perez showcased.

[dyrewolfe]

@SteveG: According to Toto Wolff, Hamilton wasn't given any orders to hang back. They would have been quite happy to do a stacked pitstop, right behind Rosberg.

As far as managing his tyres, I don't think he did any worse than any of the other top drivers (Rosberg obviously did better by virtue of being in front and not having to fight). That said, it has hurt him at other races and he may well have struggled more if it weren't for the safety car periods.

[GSC]

Surprise surprise, the Monaco GP is a non spectacle and decided ultimately by qualifying. What a waste of a spot on the F1 calender it is. Utterly dull from start to finish annually.

[CaledonianCraig]

Sorry folks (probably get ripped to shreds for this remark) but I enjoyed that race. Plenty of incidents and yes there were some overtaking as well.

Rosberg drove a superb race managing his tyres masterfully and dictating the race from the front. A very mature drive. Red Bull will be pleased with that outcome and Hamilton may be peeved a little but fourth is a decent return. True the McLaren looked decent but I wouldn't get too excited by that as Monaco is not an aero-dynamically important race so once we are back on the faster sweeping corners of proper circuits I believe McLaren will struggle again.

[GSC]

Each to their own Craig, but that was a particularly dull race to me. Not going to blame the tyres either, Monaco will be a crap race regardless.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

A fairly dull race, a couple of safety cars kept it watchable, good win for Rosberg, good race for Vettel too

[SteveG]

@DW - didnt think he was hanging back that's why I said 'unless'. His problem was no doubt tyres - which caused him to lose time at a critical point in the race.

[dyrewolfe]

Surprise surprise, the Monaco GP is a non spectacle and decided ultimately by qualifying. What a waste of a spot on the F1 calender it is. Utterly dull from start to finish annually.

If you'd put your glasses on, you'd realise you were watching Hollyoaks!

You obviously were watching something else, as the race was actually quite interesting (from the first safety car onwards) and the results WEREN'T decided by qualifying.

[Bull]

how come we never saw Kimi take 10th?

[CaledonianCraig]

Another thing I don't buy was the Ferrari explanation of Alonso's lack of pace. They claimed he had debris stuck under his car but it worked itself free. Really? His pace was slow before the race was stopped so if it were trapped then why wasn't it removed when the cars were on the grid for the restart?

[Bull]

Results apparently are upheld due to this "Tyre-gate"

will be interesting to see the verdict

[CaledonianCraig]

Results apparently are upheld due to this "Tyre-gate"

will be interesting to see the verdict

I can't see it making one iota of difference. After all it was agreed on and known about by the FIA (rightly or wrongly) so they can hardly now punish Mercedes for it. No doubt they will just make sure it never happens again.

[SteveG]

just on a lighter note:

Whenever see Monaco always wondered which lucky devils had an apartment in that block in the middle of Loews hairpin - then today noticed that all but ONE of the balconies was empty EH??

Also sky and bbc need to check their calendar as according to both the race is on Sunday 10th June - should be 9th. And sky need to sort their AMs and PMs as apparently quali is 5.00PM and the race 5.30AM.

And finally whatever happened to Tooned ??

[Fernando]

[Bull]

interesting so what do we think will happen?

[Fernando]

That letter the FIA sent out would suggest that Mercedes/Pirelli are in trouble

[Bull]

yeah i got that lol but i mean punishment wise what do you think?

points deduction?

tests for everybody? etc

[GSC]

Mercedes lose all points from the Monaco GP I guess

[Bull]

Is it true Kimi said Perez should be punched in the face?

[Fernando]

yes it is Bullbo

On the Mercedes issue could range from pts deduction to a fine to being kicked out of the championship until 2014.

I suspect that many teams won't take it lightly as realistically their going to have an advantage when the tyres are changed in Canada. so i wouldn't rule them being suspended for a few races

[monty junior]

Shocking race. Rosberg deserved the win but it was gifted really with Hamilton`s troubles and Vettel`s acceptance of second from half way through the race. Tyres are just horrific, why should a driver who wants to be aggressive and entertain be ultimately punished later on.

Basically a great day for Vettel......typical. Well done Kimi for 10th, record is still on

He was gifted nothing, he dominated the whole weekend and fully deserved to win Hamilton robbed himself of second.

Not the worst race by Monaco's standards, some nice overtakes by Perez and Sutil. Grosjean is lucky to still have a job.

[SteveG]

I agree Hami robbed himself of second as he deliberately dropped too far back for whatever reason BUT was he entirely at fault? Predictably EJ sticks the preverbial boot in saying that he should listen to his engineer more and stop trying to read the race himself. Well would this be the same engineer that told him that the Bulls were coming at him at a rate of knots and to step on it? Toto Wolff pointed out that Merc hadn't told him to dawdle - but neither does it seem, did THEY read the race (their job) and draw him a picture of exactly what was happening behind nim. When Hami says he blames himself I think what he really means is he blames himself for the being behind his teamate all weekend.

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