Can F1’s rule change add action to the spectacle of Monaco?

MONACO — There’s an unfortunate paradox at the heart of the Monaco Grand Prix weekend: Nearly every aspect that makes the circuit unique also makes it terrible for Formula 1 racing.

Nowhere in the world will you see F1 cars as close to the barriers for so much of a lap as in Monaco, but the looming Armco makes it exceedingly difficult for drivers to race side by side. The famous tunnel’s subtle curve and lack of visibility make it one of the most iconic sections of racetrack anywhere in the world, but it also prevents the use of the DRS overtaking aid ahead of the best passing spot on the lap. And the layout, which traces the same route through the principality as the inaugural race in 1929, offers the most stunning backdrop in motor racing, but is so slow that a single set of tires can last a whole race — eliminating the variations in car performance and overtaking opportunities brought about by tire degradation.

For anyone who’s ever watched all 78 laps of a Monaco Grand Prix, none of this will be news. Nor will be the question that hangs over F1 each May: How can the spectacle of the sport’s most famous venue be improved?

For some, the answer is simple: the grande dame of grands prix is no longer fit for purpose and should be struck off the calendar. But when the Automobile Club de Monaco signed a new seven-year deal last year, it became clear that F1 had no intention of letting its most glamorous event slide into a dignified retirement.

In truth, the sport’s owners have been looking at ways to spice up the race for several years now, and this season the most viable and easily implemented solution will be put in place: a mandatory two-stop strategy.

The rule — known as Article 30.5 m of the sporting regulations — doesn’t actually dictate the number of pit stops per driver, but instead requires three sets of tires to be used (a subtle difference, but one that allows for a tire change under a red flag suspension to count as a pit stop). As per the regulations at every other circuit, the rule mandates that each driver must use at least two different dry-weather compounds, unless the circuit is declared wet.

A simple change, in theory. Although things in F1 are rarely as simple as they first seem.

Is the Monaco spectacle that bad?

The decision to introduce a mandatory second pit stop was partly a reaction to last year’s Monaco Grand Prix. A huge accident involving Sergio Pérez and Kevin Magnussen on the opening lap caused a red flag, which allowed every driver on the grid to change tires when they returned to the pits before the restart.

Eventual race winner Charles Leclerc then managed the pace of the pack for the vast majority of the race to ensure his tires went the distance, and at times was lapping several seconds off his potential pace in the knowledge that Oscar Piastri behind would not be able to pass. The race featured seven overtakes — a fairly standard number for a Monaco Grand Prix — but the top ten finished in the exact same positions they restarted the race after the red flag.

Dullness is, of course, subjective and Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vassuer argued as recently as last weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix that the 2024 precession wasn’t as bad as everyone made out.

“I didn’t feel that last year the race was not exciting,” he said. “For me, it was a good one.”

Easy to say when your team won the grand prix for the first time in seven years.

The only other two editions of the Monaco Grand Prix run under the current technical regulations, in 2022 and 2023, were rain affected and therefore more interesting. In 2023, Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin let victory slip through their fingers when they pitted for slick tires just as it started to rain and then had to pit again a lap later to switch to intermediates. The race still only had 13 overtakes, but the conditions meant there was always an element of jeopardy and changes of position among the top ten.

Likewise in 2022, when Leclerc and Ferrari threw away the possibility of victory as the track transitioned from wet to dry, allowing Pérez to benefit and take victory from third on the grid. That race featured just five overtakes, but Pérez had to fight hard to hold off Carlos Sainz for the second half of the race, and two safety cars added to the drama.

The last “normal” Monaco Grand Prix (i.e. no wet weather or red flag) occurred in 2021 and, aside from Leclerc’s driveshaft breaking on the way to the grid, depriving him of a pole position start, it was a race devoid of drama. It featured just one overtake when Mick Schumacher barged past Haas teammate Nikita Mazepin on the opening lap for 18th place.

So, from the most recent sample of four races, it’s true that dry races in Monaco are rarely exciting.

Will a second pit stop make any difference?

During both wet and dry Monaco Grands Prix in recent years, the most effective way of passing the car in front has been doing so in the pit stops. Having two mandatory stops, in both wet and dry, will inevitably increase the chances of drivers moving up or down the order.

In 2021, Sebastian Vettel made up two positions on Lewis Hamilton and Pierre Gasly by pitting later than both. When his rivals went to change tires, Vettel pushed his Aston Martin as hard as he could in clear air and the effort paid off as he emerged ahead of them following his own tire change.

As is always the case, safety cars and red flags will still present the best opportunities for drivers to pit in order to minimize time loss. A repeat of last year’s lap one red flag will almost certainly see all remaining cars take on new tires, but there will still be some jeopardy left around the timing of the second stop.

Pirelli will bring softer compounds to Monaco this year, with the new C6 (a brand-new compound this year and the softest in Pirelli’s range) designated as the soft tire, the C5 (last year’s soft) designated as the medium, and the C4 (last year’s medium) designated as the hard. While the softer rubber should be slightly more prone to degradation, Gasly and George Russell made a set of C4s last 77 laps after the red flag last year — meaning this year’s hard tire could still easily complete an entire race distance if required.

The question will be when to pit and for which compound. It’s been suggested by some paddock insiders that those outside the top ten positions will pit on the opening lap to get one of their stops out of the way. Although it would mean completing longer second and third stints, it could be beneficial for two reasons. First, it should put the driver in clear air at the back of the field, meaning they can make the most of their car’s performance without being stuck in traffic. And second, it could result in a big win if a red flag or safety car emerges later in the race and the driver can use that period to make their mandatory second stop while others will still be making their first with one stop left to go.

More theories over potential strategies will likely emerge ahead of Sunday’s race, but McLaren team principal Andrea Stella believes the key will be to treat it like any other race.

“In fairness, you approach it in the same way, with the same tools, with the same kind of thought process compared to how you would approach an event,” Stella said last weekend in Imola. “Let’s say simply, you just have more constraints, so you have to make some adaptations in terms of how you approach this.

“But in itself, I think it’s interesting. After the race we had last year, a little bit of change is an interesting aspect, so I welcome these kinds of changes. Actually, I think it will be trickier in wet conditions, so for dry conditions, I think it’s just interesting. For wet, it could create some situations that may be a little awkward, but we look forward to it and, like I say, I welcome the change.”

Vasseur also flagged unforeseen complications, although his related to the tight constraints of the Monaco pit lane.

“The downside could be also that if you have an early safety car, I think everybody will jump into the pit lane, and the pit lane is very narrow — it can be an issue,” he said. “But let’s do Monaco like this [this year]. I think we were clever enough to do the experimentation, and we’ll see after Monaco what we can do and where we can improve the situation.”

Is it just a gimmick?

For years there was talk of changing the layout of the Monaco circuit to include a more obvious overtaking opportunity, but it’s hard to imagine what such a change would look like. In 2021, F1’s then-managing director of motorsport Ross Brawn said his team was using simulation tools to look at possible layout changes, but he did not give specifics and no plans were ever made public.

At 2.1 square kilometers, Monaco is the second smallest sovereign state in the world after the Vatican City, making it difficult to extend the track beyond its current layout. A suggestion that the cars could turn left before the existing Portier corner and head toward Larvotto Beach gained some traction a few years back, but always seemed unworkable given the narrow, tree-lined roads that would need to be torn up and widened in one of Europe’s most expensive neighborhoods. It would also come with no guarantee of better racing.

Changes to the regulations are far easier than tearing up the streets, so it’s little surprise that F1 and the FIA went down the two-pit-stop route. The idea has been criticized by some as a gimmick, but it is at least in line with the existing rules at every other race that mandate one pit stop by using two tire compounds. In theory, the purest form of racing would be to allow teams to decide whether their driver should make a pit stop at all, but the idea of lights-to-flags races without any pit stop or strategy dilemmas is exceedingly dull.

The two-pit-stop rule is also not the only Monaco-specific regulation in the sporting regulations, as every other race is run to 305 kilometers while Monaco stops short at 260 kilometers due to the lower speeds and time constraints of running a normal grand prix distance. If you are going to try something different, why not do it at F1’s most unusual circuit?

Racing Bulls chief technical officer Tim Goss, who previously worked for the FIA, believes it is a sign of progress within the sport that new ideas are being implemented.

“What we don’t want is one-stops and processions,” he said. “And I welcome the effort that went into it.

“There were lots and lots of things that were suggested. We’ve been talking about it for many, many years, and I think really, if it does work out as a success, then congratulations to the teams, the FIA and Formula 1 that worked together to come up with the package and the idea.”

The worst-case scenario is that the racing doesn’t improve, with the two-stops playing out as routinely as previous one-stop races in Monaco. Even if that is the case, though, very little will be lost in trying something different.

Source: espn.com