Why F1 teams are so convinced of an upset in Monaco
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
The Athletic.
The race is on! And could F1 2026 be set for its first upset with Ferrari hotly tipped to set the pace at Monaco? And if so, will it be track specialist Charles Leclerc or Lewis Hamilton that leads the way? I'm Ed Straw, and joining me to look ahead to F1's most famous race are Josh Sutil and Ben Anderson. Well, Ben, lots of excitement about Ferrari's chances heading into Monaco. Should we really regard it as favourite?
This is a tricky question, I think, because I'm always a bit suspicious. I don't know about you, Ed, when all your rivals are talking you up as the favourite. That feels to me like a spidey scent should be tingling. I think Ferrari will be more competitive. I think it's probably fair to say it's their best chance of the season, like it always is, seemingly. They become sort of the Monaco specialist team with a car that tends to always perform better at low speed and punch off the corners better, ride the curves pretty well.
What makes Ferrari a favorite for the Monaco Grand Prix?
This is kind of traditional stuff ahead of 2026, but... Even if some of that stuff is translated and they have certain advantages, I feel like, well, A, it's going to be very close because I just feel like Monaco condenses the top part of the field anyway and places a lot more emphasis on what the driver's doing, how comfortable they are, a bit of luck with the traffic, etc. And I also just feel like Ferrari, however strongly they started the season in terms of being that fly in the ointment for Mercedes... They've been caught. The break, the extended break through April, one race in seven to eight weeks, whatever it was, I don't think that's done them any favours. So I just feel like, yes, they'll be in contention, but it's going to be a really tricky weekend for them.
How do Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton compare as drivers?
I think there's a lot of pressure because you look at all the factors going into it, you look at all the strengths of that Ferrari. And like you said, Ben, it does seem like they should be strong here. I mean, one of the biggest design features of the year is that small turbo and that should theoretically help them around here. Like I said, they're very good over the bumps and curbs. It just seems like everything is sort of in that Ferrari's favour in a case of if they can't win here, where can they win? I think it will say a lot this weekend if they don't come away with a victory and be quite worrying for the rest of the year, thinking that there's nowhere else they really can win. But as we know, this weekend is all about execution.
So I think they do have a car capable of at least being in the mix. But the question will be, as always in Monaco, can their drivers put it together when it matters?
Outrageous scepticism there. You know, they've had a really fast car at Monaco in recent years, but if I read out their list of wins, 2024... Oh, that's it. Sorry. Exactly. They have only won it once during this... sort of in the 2020s, when they've often gone there as favourite. They've won it twice in the last 10 years. They've only won it 11 times in total, which is not a particularly impressive number, although I'm not sure what relevance... uh the wind's going too far back are but but it is a good point isn't it ben that there's a lot that can go wrong at monaco there's quite any it's funny there's quite an easy route to winning at monaco because it's kind of park park it on pole position and stay there but if there's one team that's likely to put it on pole and then find a way not to win or have the pace to have pole position and then find a way not to win it tends to be ferrari doesn't it
Well, absolutely. I mean, Charles Leclerc, he had pole, which year was it before that 24 win? He had a pole and the gearbox broke, didn't it? 21, yeah. On the grid. After the qualifying crash, yeah. Yeah, exactly. That was the qualifying crash. That's right. And they didn't discover it until it was too late. And then he didn't start the race from the pole position he earned. So there's always this just element of randomness and so many things that can trip you up.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:02–1:09
2
What makes Ferrari a favorite for the Monaco Grand Prix?
1:09–1:58
3
How do Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton compare as drivers?
1:58–4:26
4
What challenges do Ferrari face in Monaco this year?
4:26–13:01
5
How have recent rule changes impacted F1 racing in Monaco?
13:01–13:12
6
What is the significance of active aero being banned in Monaco?
13:12–46:57
Speakers
5 identifiedMore from The Race F1 Podcast
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