Grand Prix 2016 Monaco Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

After the excitement of Spain, with a new Grand Prix winner added to the list, we now move to the French Riviera for the jewel in F1's crown. It would appear that Ferrari's place as the next best team after Mercedes has been taken by Red Bull. I suspect we will see a reaction from the red team but do they have the capacity move back ahead?

Monaco hasn't been a happy hunting ground for Lewis Hamilton with only a single win back in his McLaren days. Nico Rosberg has won the last three races at what is, in truth, his home race. Sebastian Vettel has only won here once as well which shows what a lottery this race can sometimes be. Kimi Raikkonen hasn't won since 2005, also in a McLaren.

Mercedes will continue to be the class of the field but Monaco can be a great leveler where fractions of an inch can be the difference between winning and sitting in a pile of carbon fibre wondering what happened.

Max Verstappen must be on cloud nine, can he take this confidence in to the race around the principality? Daniel Ricciardo will have something to prove after his teenage teammate's achievement in Spain. The Toro Rosso boys will also have something to prove; Carlos Sainz that he deserves a drive in the senior team and Daniil Kvyat to show he should have kept in place at Red Bull.

I'm sure Force India will be hoping for some serious points, Williams will continue to be poor and will probably be even worse round the twists on Monaco. Haas will have their first experience of French sunshine, Renault will have something to prove at the closest thing to a home race for the French team. They could well be battling it out for the minor points places.

At the back Manor and Sauber will battle for the wooden spoon. Sauber look to be working hard to ensure they get this as they continue struggle financially. Manor, at least in Wehrlein's hands, hasn't look too bad given their budget. I wonder if Haryanto will have to ask for a special dispensation as he hasn't got within the 107% time.

Fun in the sun? Monaco is always more exciting in the wet, I wonder if we will see a sprinkling of rain just to spice things up?

 

[Incubus]

Does it ever rain in Monaco?

---------------------------

Blimey Titch , it's only south-east of France, not the Patacama desert!

 

[Titch]

 

[oli_f1_best_sport]

Hoping for a 2011-like race. Back then we had 20 overtakes, just watch the first 15 laps... Insane stuff.
Maybe Ferrari parks the bus with softs in the race? That could be funny when half of the field tries to park the bus with softs and some cars are un ultrasofts trying to push to make a 2 stop work xD
Crashes surely incoming then

 

[Galahad]

Does it ever rain in Monaco?

1960, 1972, 1975, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1996, 1997, 2008. The royal family wasn't led by a man called Rainier for nothing.

 

[Incubus]

Would I be wrong in assuming the 1984 edition in torrential conditions still holds the record for the slowest average speed (61mph) a GP was ever run at? It might be different now though now that we have safety cars during races...

 

[Titch]

Look guys, the Monogasques would prefer it if the world believed that Monaco was paradise and that it never rained ever.

 

[The Pits]

it doesn't.....

in the tunnel!!

 

[Incubus]

It did in 1981 when there was a fire in the Lowes Hotel kitchen and the sprinklers' system flooded the tunnel just before the race was due!

 

[Greenlantern101]

the building excitement is palpable

 

[FB]

I'm quite looking forward to it this year, unusually. I suppose it's just to see what tricks and stunts the two Merc drivers get up to this race.

 

[Greenlantern101]

Nothing clumsy I hope.

 

[F1Brits_90]

know Monaco GP has it critics. Critics say its slow, Impossible to overtake Nelson Piquet Sr said it was like riding a bicycle around your living room but it always 1 of my favourite races of the season with the history, prestige, harbour, yachts & casinos. whether its the jewel in the f1 crown is up for debate because arguably singapore night race could rival it. But as i said definitely the most prestigious as if you asked every driver which 2 races would they like to win I would say every F1 driver would say their Home race & Monaco, because people remember Monaco winner just like the world champion as its greatest test of a drivers skill/ability arguably tougher than le mans because the concentration needed to be kept for for over a 4 day period with accuracy & precision through the barriers needed every corner. Because 1 lapse & bang your out or weekend ruined

something i didn't know only the great Graham hill has completed the triple crown of motorsport. But i wonder whether Juan Pablo Montoya will have a serious go at Le mans because surely he would want to have a serious go at joining a legendary status

 

[teabagyokel]

If Jim Clark couldn't win it, but David Coulthard could twice, it is a pretty poor indicator of who is a great driver.

 

[vintly]

I love Monaco. For me best summed up using a quote from Don Logan in Sexy Beast, edited only very slightly:

It's not about the money is it? It's the charge, it's the bolt, it's the buzz, it's the sheer fuck off-ness of it all. Am I right?

Monaco is barmy in most respects - a crazy slice of reality whether there's a race or not, but it fits so perfectly with the excesses of F1. The anticipation as the lights are about to go out is a highlight of the calendar for me.

Happy to forgive the ensuing procession - any genuine racing intrigue is a bonus.

 

[The Pits]

If Jim Clark couldn't win it, but David Coulthard could twice, it is a pretty poor indicator of who is a great driver.

oh come on, Olivier Panis is an all time great, and lets not forget Mark Webber!!

 

[cider_and_toast]

Going into this race I reckon there are 5 drivers who are under higher than average mental stress. To a greater or lesser degree those would be both Mercedes drivers, Kyvatt, Vettel and Ricciardo.

Mental stress means mistakes. Monaco doesn't respond well to mistakes.

 

[Galahad]

If its true that the Red Bull is spectacularly fast in slow corners, and the Renault engine upgrade is worth 30hp or thereabouts, then is this a weekend to relieve your bookmaker of some hard currency?

 

[Kewee]

If Jim Clark couldn't win it, but David Coulthard could twice, it is a pretty poor indicator of who is a great driver.

I don't think any race is a measure of a drivers career or greatness, what Monaco does do, probably more than any other Grand Prix, is provide a measure of a team and driver over an entire weekend.. The ability of a team to reach the perfect set-up using a drivers feedback, the ability of a driver to put in a mistake free qualifying lap, and finally a driver reaching greatness by achieving perfection for every lap on race day. Some achieve it once, other such as Coulthard, Webber and Alonso twice, Hill five times, Senna six. All these drivers achieved a true measure of greatness on one day of the year. Although it's not a measure of a drivers entire career, we shouldn't downplay any winner of Monaco. Clark's lack of success at Monaco shouldn't detract from his reputation, he raced at a time when reliability was an issue and he quite simply died too soon to take a win there.

 

[Kewee]

Going into this race I reckon there are 5 drivers who are under higher than average mental stress. To a greater or lesser degree those would be both Mercedes drivers, Kyvatt, Vettel and Ricciardo.

Mental stress means mistakes. Monaco doesn't respond well to mistakes.

Does that mean a stress free Alonso and Button will do a 1-2.

 

[cider_and_toast]

You never know.

I don't think Button and Alonso are under anywhere near as much stress to perform as the 5 I've mentioned. They will be extremely frustrated but that comes from the fact they haven't got a car under them to do the job. Also, the whole world knows that.