Race Weekend Central

F1 Midweek: Was The Grand Prix of Monaco Dull?

If any grand prix race is more famous than others, it is the Monaco Grand Prix. The legendary race, first established in 1929, is very much the same street circuit today as it was back then, apart from Rascasse corner replacing the old gasworks hairpin just before the start/finish line. In addition, some of the buildings have changed around the course, but following last Sunday’s race there, why do Lewis Hamilton and others find the street event boring and want a change?

In a way, you cannot blame Hamilton for complaining about the race. In a race that is famous for its tight corners and attrition, Sunday brought only one accident when Charles LeClerc ran into the back of Brendon Hartley coming out of the tunnel, when the Sauber drivers’ brakes failed. But the retirement rate was low, and for Hamilton, it was just a cruise that saw the Briton hanging out in third place for most of the race.

What the race favored was Daniel Ricciardo and his Red Bull. Even though the Australian had a power unit failure midway through the race, the narrow streets prevented anyone else challenging him, especially Sebastian Vettel, and Ricciardo took the race by a little over seven seconds. It was a well-deserved victory considering that even Ricciardo admitted that if it was another track, he would have never finished first.

What Hamilton does not realize that racing is lucky, and on that day, it was Ricciardo who benefited. If anyone has traveled to Monaco, you can see that it would be almost impossible to extend that street circuit any more than it already is, despite the principality expanding some land.

The whole point of this is that Hamilton had a difficult day, and in his frustration, is venting things out. But Hamilton is not the only one having problems with the boredom. So too is Fernando Alonso, who retired from the race with a gearbox issue.

But there is a fine saying that states: “If it is not broken, don’t fix it.” And this applies to this situation. Who knows, maybe the race next season will have a different outcome, but the idea that this year’s race was a safe race, that drivers didn’t want to take chances.  As for Hamilton, he can now move on to the next round in Canada, which is a race he has won six times.

It is doubtful that he will complain there.

About the author

Mark is a motorsports journalist specializing in the field for the last 16 years in Formula 1 with experience in covering team launches, feature stories and race weekends during the season. In addition, Mark covers the World Endurance Championship, which includes the 24 Hours of Lemans. He also speaks French up to an intermediate level, with a basic understanding of German. Have worked for agencies as Racing Information Service News, Racing Nation, Fansided, the Munich Eye Newspaper in Munich, Germany, and Autoweek magazine. Mark is also a knowledgeable Formula 1 driver after graduating from both the F1 International and AGS racing academies.

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Russ

Was it the most exciting race ? NO. But somehow F1 seems to make it at least a little entertaining. The same can’t be said for all the other series.

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