The Monaco Grand Prix has been a source of anger and frustration for many F1 stars
The Monaco Grand Prix is arguably the most recognisable and famous race on the Formula 1 calendar. It’s also the most contentious.
This year’s race will get underway on Sunday afternoon, with Kimi Antonelli taking pole ahead of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. Despite being one of sport’s most eye-catching events, the circuit has come in for strong criticism from drivers, with George Russell even calling for the event to be ‘scrapped’
Complaints have raged about the lack of space to overtake on the iconic track due to modern cars that are too wide. Due to Cadillac’s involvement this season, 22 cars will race around the tight streets for the first time since 2016, only heightening the tension, with many drivers branding the race “boring”.
The Monaco GP is set to remain on the calendar until 2035, however. Here, Mirror Sport takes a look at what several F1 stars have said about the Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton
Charles Leclerc won his first Monaco Grand Prix in May 2024, but Lewis Hamilton was unhappy with the processional nature of the race.
JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! All the best sports news and much more on our dedicated Facebook page
He said: “It was non-eventful. Everyone drove so slowly. It didn’t matter what tyre you were on. We were driving seconds off the pace. I don’t know what it was like watching but I am sure people were falling asleep. We have to find ways of spicing it up a bit more, maybe three mandatory stops?”
Speaking after the 2018 edition, he said: “We were just cruising around from lap six, literally cruising. So it wasn’t really racing. If that was exciting for you to watch, no problem.”
Hamilton said the race was “the longest 78 laps ever”, telling BBC Sport: “It was a super-unexciting race for everyone. We are driving at high speed, there is not a lot of action, you’re just trying to bring it home, for 56 laps. Oh my God, it was long. Forty laps to go, I was like, ‘Oh God, please’. When it finished, I was like, ‘Thank goodness’.”
Max Verstappen
Also voicing his concerns in the 2024 race, four-time world champion Verstappen, while sitting in in sixth, told his team across the radio: “F*** me, this is really boring. I should’ve brought my pillow.”
He later said: “We are driving literally half-throttle on the straights, in a higher gear than you would normally do, four seconds off the pace. That’s not really racing.
“We all know in Monaco what it is like. In the last few years it is even more difficult with the width of the cars but it is nothing new. First I would like to change if possible a few little things because it would make will make it more exciting.
“Overall the weekend is really cool but it’s the Sunday race that is a little bit boring. The scenery is still great but if we could find a way to race better that would be my preferred solution. And if they asked for my opinion I would try to see what is possible.”
Fernando Alonso
The 2018 edition was particularly controversial, as drivers slowed to ensure the ‘hyper-soft’ and ‘ultra-soft’ tyres reached the required stint lengths.
The race was won by Daniel Ricciardo, with Sebastian Vettel coming second and Hamilton in third. Fernando Alonso was unhappy with the result. He said: “Extremely boring. This is probably the most boring race ever.”
The experienced Alonso claimed Monaco’s races had always been the same, saying the wider current cars are not an issue. He said: “I never overtook any car. You see one overtake every 10 years.”
Lando Norris
Speaking at Thursday’s pre-race press conference, the McLaren star was asked how challenging the circuit would be in qualifying with 22 drivers on the track.
Norris said: “Probably pretty [challenging]. I mean, well, I have three in a practice session with a lot more cars on track. It’ll be tough. It’s already been tough in previous years with people not getting out of the way in the right places and things. It’s tricky.”
Speaking in 2025 on how Monaco could be improved, he said: “I don’t think you can really change the race apart from if you make the cars half the size of what they are now.
“I don’t think it needs to change that much. It’s never been anything else than what it has been now. So I think people should just be happy with what it is.
“Monaco has never been a race that’s been good on Sunday. Never has. Yet it’s the race everyone wants to win. It’s always been like that. Even some of the best races that you’ve ever seen, zero overtakes.
“I don’t think you’re ever going to get it to be a great race. It’s never been, not saying it can never be, I’m just saying it never has been. Yet everyone still knows it as just the best race of the season.”
Lance Stroll
Following the 2024 race, the Aston Martin driver was blunt about his feelings, stating that the organisers “really need to do something with the track.” He also branded the Sunday races in Monaco as “horrendous.”
Alex Albon
During the 2024 race, Alex Albon spent 78 laps stuck behind Yuki Tsunoda’s deliberately slow-paced car. He voiced his annoyance over the radio and later explained that the extreme tyre management makes the race dangerously dull for the drivers.
“It’s actually hard to stay focused when you’re going that slowly because you’re just not even near anything. You’re not near any limits,” he complained.
George Russell
Despite cars this year being smaller, narrower, and lighter than in 2025, comments from Russell last year suggesting that the race should be cancelled altogether have resurfaced.
“For all the drivers, qualifying is the most exhilarating moment of the weekend,” Russell said. “Do we accept that? There should be no race, and it’s a qualifying race.”
Speaking in 2025, Russell said: “Monaco has always been the same. I think I have seen some of the proposed track changes that definitely will not make it worse. The small problem you have in Monaco is the one overtaking opportunity, which is out of the tunnel.
“The natural racing line is you’re going from the left, braking through the middle of the track and then you pull over to the right. So it’s very easy for a driver to position his car.
“But I honestly right now I don’t have the answer. Maybe the manual override would be a solution and you know you’ve to do all of this management through the race and if you’ve got a lot more power just to pass somebody in an unconventional space, it isn’t going to make the show worse.
“But part of me just thinks we need to accept Monaco for what it is. Formula 1 is better by having Monaco on the calendar. It is the most exhilarating qualifying of the season. And the race is always pretty boring, but it also makes us appreciate the other races as well.”
Charles Leclerc
Leclerc has been adamant that the increased number of cars will be an issue for drivers during qualifying at his home race.
The Monegasque said: “I think it’s a problem. I mean, 22 cars on such a short track I think will be quite tricky, especially because with these cars.
“I mean, a bit less now, still whenever you are like three, four seconds on tracks like this, you lose a bit of time. So it’s going to be tricky, but it’s the same for everybody and we’ll have to adapt to it. But it’s not ideal for Q1, I think.”
Oliver Bearman
Young British star Bearman labelled Monaco “boring”, stating that the real action takes place in the days leading up to the famous race.
“I think people just need to accept that the thrill of Monaco is on Saturday in qualifying,” he said last year. “It’s always going to be a boring race with a track of that size and unfortunately with the cars of this size, nothing’s going to happen.
“I think smaller cars will be better but I don’t think it’s going to fix everything because 20, 30 years ago it was the same scenario, not many overtakes. Quali is where the fun is in Monaco and I think that’s even more reason to qualify well, then you don’t get stuck in the train.”
Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package
Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.
Sky broadcasts more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more with at least 215 live from the top flight alongside Formula 1, darts and golf.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login