1. Monaco is back
2020 was the first time since 1954 that the F1 Blue Riband event no longer took place in the Principality after last year’s Grand Prix fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic.
The return of the legendary venue is a welcome event for the drivers. The Monte Carlo circuit is considered to be one of the most challenging races on the calendar and one of the most eagerly awaited.
Monaco’s unique, limited track layout makes overtaking almost impossible, and on Saturday it is very important that qualifying always offers an exciting spectacle.
The race may not be the most exciting, but it is always a sight to behold to watch the drivers climb the barriers at incredible speed as they tackle the famous track and battle for the glory of being crowned Monaco GP winners .
And as the world gets one step closer to normal, Monaco will welcome a limited number of fans (around 40% capacity) for this weekend’s race. 7,500 spectators per day are admitted.
2. Will Hamilton and Verstappen keep it clean?
Fine margins made the difference between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen in all four races this season, and each of them featured a wheel-to-wheel battle.
On the subject of matching items
Hamilton is ahead three times – in Bahrain, Portugal and Spain – while Verstappen slipped past Hamilton’s Mercedes on his way to victory at Imola and led most of the Spanish GP after taking another powerful step at Turn 1 had made it.
The result is that Hamilton goes to Monaco with a 14-point advantage over Verstappen in the championship.
So far, both drivers have managed to maintain respect and successfully avoid larger contacts, mainly thanks to Hamilton, who has withdrawn from his duels on Turn 1.
On the subject of matching items
However, the law of averages suggests that over the course of a 23-round season where Hamilton and Verstappen are very little separated in terms of performance, there is inevitably a flashpoint or two on the way.
Could it be that in Monaco, when Verstappen urgently has to fight back in the title race, the fight will turn into a collision for the first time?
The pair faced the Nouvelle Chicane during the final Monaco race in 2019 as they battled for the lead, and it was Hamilton who emerged victorious that day.
Round 5 is now loading … #MonacoGP # F1 pic.twitter.com/FuDaHf5QBs
– Formula 1 (@ F1) May 17, 2021
3. Pressure build-up on Perez
After Sergio Perez was not in the lead for victory in Spain on the way to fifth place, Red Bull boss Christian Horner emphasized that the team was relying on the Mexican to put pressure on Mercedes in the championship fight.
Despite giving insight into his potential, Perez has not been able to compete for the podium this season, leaving team-mate Verstappen vulnerable to a two-pronged Mercedes attack.
This proved crucial in Bahrain and Spain as Mercedes was able to engage in a bold gamble of strategy that ultimately paved the way for winning both races.
Horner said after the Barcelona race that Red Bull “urgently needs” Perez to join the fight so as not to lose the strategic advantage to Mercedes. Horner’s inclusion marked the first time this year that Red Bull publicly urged Perez to step up his performances while continuing to adapt to the RB16B.
Perez will try to improve in Monaco, where strategy often decides who wins as overtaking opportunities are limited and the position as king is on the track.
And he’s not afraid to set the bar high in his optimistic view of Red Bull’s chances. He says there is a car that can fight for victory on the streets of Monte Carlo.
4. The trust in Ferrari and Alpine is high
Two teams that are traveling to Monaco with high hopes are Ferrari and Alpine. Both expect the racetrack to play to the strengths of their respective cars.
Ferrari in particular expects to lead the midfield battle for the principality as it was the third fastest team in Barcelona and outperformed main rivals McLaren for the first time this season.
Charles Leclerc, who has been one of the stars of the season so far, will try to finish his home hoodoo as Monegasque failed to score a single point in four previous races in Monaco.
After an initially slow start to the campaign, Alpine has made leaps and bounds and achieved an impressive rate of improvement, boosted by a successful upgrade introduced in Portimao.
Esteban Ocon has led Alpine in the lead, with the French squad looking particularly quick for over one lap in the last few races – highlighted by their impressive lap for P5 on the grid in Spain.
Alpine’s pace has tended to slow down on race day, although that should be less of a problem in Monaco when it can maximize its qualifying result and confuse it again for Ferrari and McLaren.
5. Can the Spanish sector 3 give some advice?
Barcelona’s Mickey Mouse final sector consists of a combination of medium and low speed corners and often provides an indication of how the competition order will develop in Monaco.
The strong performance in this sector bodes well for Monaco’s unique, tight and curvy layout. The signs from last weekend’s Spanish GP showed that Red Bull, Ferrari and Alpine all performed excellently in this area.
The prospects for Red Bull are looking good and that will give the team a welcome boost in confidence as they aim to fight back in the title race with a much-needed win against Mercedes.
“On paper I would probably say that it would suit Red Bull more than us,” admitted Andrew Shovlin, technical director at Mercedes’ trackside.
“We drove our wing with maximum downforce and we saw it on their car on Friday, but they didn’t drive there so they could get a little more downforce. On paper, it’s probably for them.”
The fight at the top of the grid (and right behind) promises to be another fascinating story to follow this weekend in Monaco.
The post Will Hamilton and Verstappen keep it clean? Five topics of conversation about the Monaco GP first appeared on monter-une-startup.
