For the first time in Monaco history, the top 10 drivers finished the same way they started on Sunday, with Charles Leclerc winning
Drivers Love Monaco , because qualification is the biggest problem of the season. But it's impossible not to agree with Max Verstappen's conclusion that Sunday's race was «boring.»
We can debate that, though. When car regulations change in 2026, Monaco should be considered a priority. Whatever you do to overtake there will effectively help you overtake everywhere.
Monaco has been very difficult for many years, sometimes a little boring, especially as the cars have grown. In the 1980s, cars were huge. They have shrunk slightly in size, but have now outgrown Monaco both in size and productivity.
Monaco has such a tradition, so it needs to remain on the calendar and we have to prioritize both in the car and on the track. These changes in Monaco itself may take a little longer, but are not impossible. A couple of years ago I suggested that all planned construction work should be viewed as an opportunity. Where they are creating land for building buildings, there is nothing wrong with saying that the road layout should be designed as an extension of the race track and then buildings will be built around that road structure.
Increase overtaking opportunities< p>Where you now come down from the hairpin and turn right into the tunnel, the city reclaims land on the left. There should be an option to turn left, go 200/300 meters and get another hairpin, essentially a roundabout, which could potentially provide room for overtaking. Then the drivers would come back again and go straight into the tunnel, which was a little faster. It will probably only be an extra 500 meters in total, but it will give you the opportunity if planned correctly. This will be my only amendment to the diagram. Otherwise, she is very demanding and her traditions should be protected. This could be a good race.
Let us remind you that the qualification was mega. Watching the cars go around one lap at high speed is amazing. But what we saw was a race that was eight to ten seconds behind the qualifying lap time, so it was probably three to four seconds off the potential race lap time.
Update Tire Rules
Teams take the «track position is everything and the hard tire makes the race» mentality without even thinking about it.
The authorities must respond immediately with simple changes, one of which would be the introduction of a rule ensuring that all three tire compounds are used for a certain percentage of the race — perhaps a minimum of 10 percent. In Monaco you will have to complete a minimum of eight laps on each component. You are committed to it for a certain period and it will lead to more risk.
I would also like to introduce a rule at all races to ensure that when there is a red flag, teams can only change tires to the same compound while they are in the pits awaiting the restart. We shouldn't see «jumping out of bounds» situations like those used on Sunday. If you started on medium tires, as the first four cars did before the red flag on the first lap, you will have to put the medium tires back on. In Monaco there is always a very good chance of a safety car or red flag. During this period, teams should not be able to apply their pit strategy as it could disrupt the race.
On Sunday Carlos Sainz was able to resolve a tire problem on the first lap when the race was red flagged after Perez's race. Crash Photo: Reuters/Claudia Greco Change the design of the car
However, perhaps the most important thing is the car. In 2026 the rules will be completely rewritten and perhaps we need to think about how we address the issue of DRS which is too often relied upon at other circuits. Over the years, drivers have been robbed of overtaking potential or the ability to overtake well on regular circuits, and with DRS they are just waiting for that opportunity.
Then if you are decent at overtaking Overtaking without DRS, you can just take it to Monaco , where DRS is not powerful enough on its own in the pit lane. Personally, I don't like DRS, it's artificial. Drivers must be able to somehow overtake themselves.
We should also consider reducing the number of cars that Monaco has outgrown. Car size, car weight, tire size and width. And also little things like the width of the front fender being equal to the width of the front tires. The driver does not see this front wing. He doesn't see it at all. Therefore, it should be slightly narrower than the front wheels so that they can see and position the front wheel correctly without worrying about damaging the front fender.
If the front fender is 10 cm narrower than the outside of the front tire, the risk of knocking it off is significant decreases, so there will be more opportunities to attack someone.
That's what Max Verstappen said. You want to hang it there. The way the drivers rode around the track on the hard tires was certainly boring.
There's a lot that can be done. I think some logical thinking is needed here. I don't think we'll ever turn Monaco into an overtaking fest, and I don't think we want it, but we need to open the door to ensure the fastest and best drivers win.
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