Ahead of time, there were mainly question marks about the implementation of two mandatory pit stops in the Monaco Grand Prix. Afterwards, opinions are divided, but the big problem in Monte Carlo did not seem to be solved by it.
Alexander Albon was ultimately right. The Williams driver spoke prophetic words on Thursday: “In midfield, there is a good chance that teammates will help each other.”
He pointed to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix of 2024, in which Kevin Magnussen held everyone behind him, so that teammate Nico Hülkenberg could stop without losing places. “That can happen here too,” Albon said. “Although you might not want to race that way.”
Apparently, Albon did want that himself, because Williams used exactly this strategy with teammate Carlos Sainz. Racing Bulls did the same with Liam Lawson, who frustrated the race for everyone behind him. Isack Hadjar benefited and stopped twice in the gap that the New Zealander created. “Holding them up was something I had to keep in mind,” Lawson admitted afterwards. “You really have to stay focused when you do that. But we had discussed this.”
Importance of Qualifying Has Become Even Greater
Albon even forced a frustrated George Russell to a desperate action. He overtook by cutting the chicane. “Yes, we just weren’t planning to go harder than this,” Albon himself admitted. Laughing: “I can imagine the frustrations were rising behind me.” Incidentally, Russell admitted afterwards that Mercedes wanted to do exactly the same, until Racing Bulls and Williams thwarted them.
These antics also showed that qualifying on Saturday in Monaco has become even more important. Mercedes experienced a dramatic Saturday, which had just as dramatic an effect on Sunday. Teams with two cars in the top ten were the winners.
That was the effect in midfield, and an effect that could also be expected. Teammates creating gaps for each other is not new in Monaco either, but because there had to be two stops now, the emphasis was even more on it. Whether it was good publicity for the sport – such a row of frustrated drivers seeing their race ruined – is another question.
The answer undoubtedly depends on who you ask. In any case, it was not the intended effect: it did not provide extra excitement. Extra frustrations all the more.
Not Being Able to Overtake Remains The Big Problem
The underlying problem was not solved by it either; in fact, the fact that overtaking is not possible in Monaco made this possible. The combination of this format of cars and this track is not a good marriage. “The cars are simply too big. Next year they will be a little smaller, but not much,” Verstappen already said on Thursday.
That ultimately also influenced the battle at the front. Lando Norris was the fastest driver on the track and the deserved winner. But actually only in Monaco can a driver, in this case Verstappen, be able to take a gamble like he did in the race. Where the others bravely went to the pits for the second time, the Red Bull driver stayed out. He knew: even if Norris comes back behind me on fresh tires, overtaking is still impossible.
This is how millions of television viewers saw a final phase of the Monaco Grand Prix in which the car at the front was not going to win. Behind it: a mock duel in which a successful overtaking action would not happen anyway. The two mandatory pit stops were not crucial for Verstappen and Red Bull’s gamble on a red flag, but it was more obvious to do so. Then they would use another controversial rule: that teams are allowed to change tires during a red flag.
‘Norris was Praying That the Red Flag would Stay Out’
“It would have been a different story if that red flag had come,” said Oscar Piastri. “But now those two mandatory stops made no difference at all.” That sound came from more drivers’ mouths: “For me it made absolutely no difference,” added Lewis Hamilton, who finished fifth. “You can’t drive long and hold everyone up anymore. Although I couldn’t oversee everything of course, maybe drivers did do that?”, the Ferrari driver wondered. If Hamilton watches the race again, he will get the answer.
Winner Norris was more critical, although he first looked from his own perspective. Normally the pole is an advance on the victory. Now the McLaren driver had to get to work. “So I hate it,” he was clear. “It made it all a lot more anxious for me. As far as I’m concerned, it was a one-stopper, that would have been much more relaxed.”
After the Brit admitted that he might be a bit biased about the matter, he went into it more deeply. “It’s about what you want. Do you want a fabricated race? Because there was no more overtaking than usual. That was the intention, wasn’t it? Because now you give people opportunities purely based on luck, who can wait for a red flag.”
That scenario played out in front of Norris’ eyes, who saw Verstappen doing exactly that. “And then he would have won the race. ‘Congratulations, well done’, no, of course I was praying that that wouldn’t happen,” the eventual winner admitted. “You don’t get the deserved winner in such a scenario. As far as I’m concerned, the driver who drove the best race wins.”
‘Don’t want Formula 1 to Turn Into A Show’
In Norris’ eyes, Leclerc would have been the deserved winner if he had still managed to make a successful overtaking action. “I did have a few moments when I saw a gap, but Lando immediately covered it. All in all, that might have been a bit too optimistic,” the Ferrari driver underlined the big problem. “That there are few opportunities here on Sunday is also part of the charm of the race,” he added as a judgment about his home race.
“That’s why I don’t understand that people still had high expectations,” Norris continued. “Overtaking has never been good here. But I don’t want Formula 1 to turn into a show just to entertain people. It’s a sport. Everything here revolves around Saturday. That’s been the case for decades. The last thing I want is a fabricated race, we really have to stay away from that.”
So Norris put his finger on the sore spot once again. Do something about the overtaking opportunities. “We just have to handle it better with the cars, with the tires. Then you might see more racing. Not with a fixed number of pit stops.”