Following a thrilling race in Barcelona last Sunday, the drivers will head to the glamorous streets of Monte Carlo this Sunday, in a race which presents many tight corners, several elevation changes and few opportunities to overtake.
Monaco is the one race that they all want to win and is the most glamorous and most famous race of the season. Perhaps no more so than Lewis Hamilton. After colliding with Nico Rosberg in Spain, Hamilton needs to register his first win of the season as soon as possible, however Monaco is a track that has in recent years been rather cruel to the defending champion. After claiming victory in 2008 Hamilton has had a tough time around the streets of the principality.
Only one way to arrive at the #MonacoGP https://t.co/QNlWGbkb2N
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 25, 2016
2014 was the first time that Hamilton had the car to win the race. It was Rosberg that took pole position in controversial circumstances. Hamilton came home 2nd place. The following year after dominating the race and cruising home to victory Hamilton pitted under a late safety car, demoting Hamilton to 3rd place and Rosberg sealing yet another win.
The Spanish Grand Prix marked the introduction of young Red Bull driver Max Verstappen, who was the youngest ever race winner. The 18 year old Dutchman took advantage of Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg retiring, following a collision on the first lap.
Going into race six of the 2016 calendar the Drivers and Constructors Championship tables are starting to take shape. After last week’s disaster for Mercedes, it would appear Lewis Hamilton can ill afford to make any more slip ups if he is to retain his title.
Despite the fact Nico Rosberg did not ’t further his point advantage on Hamilton, it is another race weekend gone for Hamilton to try and catch the pacesetter Rosberg, who currently sits 43 points ahead in the constructor’s championship.
Fridays Practice 2 looked very promising for Red Bull in particular, as all 4 of their drivers including Torro Rosso finished with the top 6 lap times. Daniel Ricciardo set the pace in P2 and he will be looking to bounce back after a disappointing 4th place finish in Spain despite leading for 28 laps.
Good day yesterday. Love this place. You can see why ? pic.twitter.com/pMFbvEcUoP
— Daniel Ricciardo (@danielricciardo) May 27, 2016
Following Daniel Riccardo’s disappointing result last weekend, he has this week told the BBC “it’s his time to win”. Ricciardo has also been given the upgraded Renault engine by his team before Max Verstappen, which puts the Australian in a very strong position going into the Monaco Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton sent out a strong message to Nico Rosberg by dominating P1, as he set a fastest lap time of 1.15.537. Hamilton was half a second quicker than teammate Nico Rosberg in the first half an hour of P1, and will be looking to replicate his P1 performance come Sunday.
Monaco so far:
P1 @danielricciardo
P2 @LewisHamilton +0.606s
P3 @nico_rosberg +0.899s
>> https://t.co/jInrPugJYF pic.twitter.com/Mcp8FKixyK— Formula 1 (@F1) May 26, 2016
Going into the Grand Prix, it was announced that Jules Bianchi’s family would be taking legal action against 3 parties involved in F1. Bianchi sadly passed away after an incident involving a crane in the Japanese Grand Prix in 2014. The young driver scored Marussia’s only ever points in Monaco in 2014, and will be fondly remembered for his performance, and the potential he carried at just 25 years old.
Will Hamilton be able to break his Monaco curse? Can Nico Rosberg extend his championship lead? Or with Red Bull’s seemingly electric pace can they take a second win of the season at a track where they are traditionally strong at? Leave your comments in below.
