The Monaco F1 Grand Prix has traditionally been considered one of the most prestigious motorsport occasions in the world and along with the Indianapolis 500 and the Le Mans 24 hour race for sports cars, is part of the famed motor racing triple crown.
Only one driver in history has claimed victory at all three with Graham Hill completing the triumvirate in 1972 by claiming victory at Le Mans alongside co-driver Henri Pescarolo driving for Matra. Hill won in Monaco no less than five times between 1962 and 1969 and only Fernando Alonso has two of the three legs under his belt amongst the current drivers.
Once the jewel in F1’s crown, Monaco has over the years lost some of its glitz and glamour and during the global financial crisis in the noughties, Singapore became the place for the big business bosses to go to do business.
The current drivers all crave a win in the principality, although they admit almost to a man it is no longer a proper race. Qualifying defines the weekend and in 2024 the top ten finishers completed the race in the order they started.
Fernando Alonso described the modern-day racing in Monaco as “the most boring race ever,” and Lewis Hamilton stated that the 2022 Grand Prix “wasn’t really racing.” The problem is the modern F1 cars have a footprint which is almost 50% larger than those from before the turn of the century. They are also now 200kg heavier than those from two decades ago.
F1 cars used to dance through the tight chicanes and dive into small spaces due to their short wheelbases. The modern cars favour high-speed aerodynamic stability, which means a circuit like Monaco becomes impossible for overtaking.
Tradition Versus the Evolution of the Sport
With the 2027 F1 calendar recently announced, the FIA and FOM have decided to award the Monaco weekend a Sprint race. Opinion is divided over whether this will make the event more interesting, given we now have two qualifying sessions which are the most competitive track times during the weekend.
Grand Prix racing began in Monaco long before Formula One was ever conceived and it has hosted an event every year Grand Prix racing has been contested since 1929. Only the Italian Grand Prix held in Monza has contested more Grand Prix races than the streets of Monte Carlo.
There are many modern F1 fans who don’t realise that over the years the configuration of the circuit on the Côte d’Azur has been regularly modified. Namely in 1955, 1973, 1976, 1986, 1997, 2003 and 2015. Yet the layout is broadly the same as it was nigh on a hundred years ago when the cars first took to the streets to race for the Grand Prize.
But Monaco is a problem for modern F1 having become a status symbol only for the drivers as to who can claim pole around the jeopardy of the narrow streets and concrete walls. And F1 awarding the event a Sprint will not solve the problem of overtaking. Whilst the FIA has promised smaller cars for the next regulation cycle, they will never return to the size of those when the “King of Monaco” – Graham Hill – reigned supreme in the 1960s.
Leclerc’s Proposals and Organiser Resistance
Charles Leclerc, who is the only true Monegasque driver to have raced in F1, recently made the suggestion that the circuit be altered to accommodate the modern F1 car. Of course it’s not easy to widen most of the track, although some land reclamation from the sea was performed to include the Nouvelle chicane.
Leclerc suggested, “maybe before the tunnel you can go to the left and do a big straight there. But how feasible it is, I’m not sure.” That area of Monaco is mostly modern-style buildings and new roads and could accommodate a new straight for the circuit. The return too would improve the length of the run through the tunnel down to the chicane.
However, after much debate Michel Boeri, the president of the Automobile Club de Monaco confirms in an interview with Nice-Matin, the club have rejected all notions of a circuit modification.
Somewhat dodging the real issues Boeri suggested the decision had been made because any changes would mean the entire track would become subject to a new approval from the FIA. “The track will not be changed, contrary to what I’ve heard from many people. Removing or moving this section would automatically trigger a new track inspection and require new FIA homologation.”
Boeri appears to suggest that any modifications to the layout would pave the way for the FIA to ‘unapprove’ existing sections of the circuit which would never receive the blessing of F1’s governing body were they to be incorporated into a new track layout.
A Secure Future on the Calendar
Yet this is somewhat of a red herring, given were the masters of Formula One to be so disposed they could merely refuse to award the city another contract to host a Grand Prix when the current one expires in 2035. The city was given a ten-year extension in the summer of last season and only Bahrain, Las Vegas, Austria and Miami are guaranteed to be on the calendar for longer.
Boeri’s confidence is summed up when he makes plain that Liberty Media who own the commercial rights to F1 have given them their backing. “Our American friends have recognised how responsive we can be,” he suggested although he admitted some changes in terms of the cramped pit lane arrangements may be possible without altering the historical configuration of the circuit.
So for now the Monaco Sunday procession will presumably be replicated on Saturday morning with the addition of the Sprint race in 2027.
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The Judge, a nom de plume of an experienced F1 journalist and site founder with long-standing sources across the paddock. With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
