2026 Monaco GP Preview: Ferrari's Best Chance?
The 2026 Monaco Grand Prix will be the sixth race of the season. As of now, Mercedes has dominated the field, with five straight wins.
However, there's a new favourite for the race in Monte Carlo, with Ferrari being tipped by many as the top contenders at the twisty street circuit.
16 LECLERC Charles, Scuderia Ferrari SF-24, action during the Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco 2024, 8th round of the 2024 Formula One World Championship from May 23 to 26, 2024 on the Circuit de Monaco, in Monaco - Photo Florent Gooden / DPPI
The cornering performance of the SF-26 has been highly regarded in the paddock, and it could definitely bring Monaco success for the team. Both Ferrari drivers should be confident at Monaco; Charles Leclerc will be at home and with a new contract, and Lewis Hamilton is coming from his strongest weekend with Ferrari.
Still, the weekend could bring some surprises, and it's always difficult to keep things clean in Monaco. Will Mercedes' winning streak really end?
Kimi Antonelli is leading the Drivers' title after winning the last four races, and his teammate George Russell is second in the table, 43 points behind after a mechanical issue forced him to retire from the lead in Montreal.
After missing out in Canada due to strategy initially and mechanical issues later, McLaren needs a strong outing in Monaco, and the car has been showing solid pace recently. World Champion Lando Norris won last year in Monaco, and Oscar Piastri also finished on the podium last year.
On the other hand, Red Bull has been competitive in the last two races and Max Verstappen will look to continue the momentum after achieving the team's first podium of the season in Canada.
No "Straight Mode" in Monaco
For the first time this season, the FIA has banned the use of "Straight Mode" at the Monaco Grand Prix. The active aerodynamics system, which reduces drag by opening the front and rear wings on straights, was deemed too dangerous for the narrow streets.
The main straight at Monaco has a constant right-hand curve, and reducing downforce there would compromise car stability. The FIA also requires that any activation zone last at least three seconds, and no section of the Monte Carlo circuit meets that threshold.
Electric Power Cut at 200 km/h
The FIA has also imposed a Monaco-specific energy map called "Rev 1". Under normal conditions, the MGU-K delivers its maximum 350 kW of electrical power until the car reaches 290 km/h.
For Monaco, that limit drops to 200 km/h, with power tapering to zero by 300 km/h. The reason is counterintuitive: Monaco's constant braking zones and slow corners regenerate too much electrical energy.
2026 Monaco GP Facts & Figures
This will be the 83rd Monaco Grand Prix in racing history, and the 72nd celebrated under the F1 World Drivers’ Championship format since 1950.
The first Monaco Grand Prix was held in 1929, and William Grover-Williams took the victory for Bugatti, while Juan Manuel Fangio won the first Monaco race that was part of the World Championship in 1950, in what was the first of his 24 Formula 1 wins.
The race was not part of the World Championship from 1951 to 1954, while one non-championship race took place in that span (1952). In 2020, the race did not take place, and it ended a run of 65 official Monaco Grands Prix in a row, since 1955, but it returned successfully in 2021.
The Monaco round is the most prestigious in Formula 1, and it is also one of the biggest motor races in the world, as it is a part of the motorsport ‘Triple Crown’ with the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
A win at Monaco often means something similar to a World Championship for a driver, and only 38 racers have won at the prestigious street circuit in Formula 1 history.
Out of those 36, only 17 have more than one victory at Monaco, and the legendary Ayrton Senna leads the all-time table with six wins at the principality and some iconic performances.
In 1984, Senna finished second in a wet race and had the pace to win on a Toleman car that was not among the most competitive machines on the grid.
Two-time F1 champion Graham Hill was another Monaco master in his prime, winning five times around the streets, a tally surpassed by Senna and matched by seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher.
Ayrton Senna driving the McLaren MP4-7 at Monaco (1992)
Four-time champion Alain Prost is the only other driver with at least four wins at Monaco, followed by Stirling Moss, Jackie Stewart, Nico Rosberg, and Lewis Hamilton (the leader among active racers) with three wins each.
In terms of the highly important pole position at Monaco, Senna also leads the table with five, followed by five-time champion and two-time winner at Monaco, Juan Manuel Fangio, two-time champion Jim Clark, three-time champion Stewart (three-time winner) and Prost with four poles at the track.
Senna also had the most podiums at Monaco, with eight. He is followed by Graham Hill, Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton, and Sebastian Vettel with seven podiums each.
Among teams, McLaren has the most wins at Monaco with 16, achieved by eight drivers.
The Pole Position will be essential for the results of Sunday’s race, as 47.8% of the Monaco GPs have been won from first on the grid (34 out of 71 - Max Verstappen won in 2021 from first on the grid, as pole-sitter Leclerc didn’t start the race).
Overall, 85.9% of the Monaco races were won from the Top 3 places (61 out of 71), which makes qualifying surely one of the most important of the entire season, if not the most important.
In 1996, Frenchman Olivier Panis won a crazy race after starting from 14th place on the grid (the lowest grid position for a Monaco winner in F1 history), but changeable weather conditions and many mistakes from seemingly every driver helped Panis and Ligier.
Red Bull won three in a row from 2021 to 2023, with Verstappen winning in 2021 and 2023, and his teammate Sergio Pérez winning the event in 2022 from third on the grid.
In 2024, Charles Leclerc made history at Monaco, becoming the first Monegasque driver to win the F1 Monaco Grand Prix and only the second to win the race at home (Louis Chiron did it in 1931, the race's third edition, before F1 even existed.
Eventual 2025 F1 champion Lando Norris won for McLaren last year from Pole Position, giving the team its 16th Monaco win.
Circuit de Monaco
A twisty, challenging track that allows no mistakes from the drivers, the iconic Circuit de Monaco will make drivers pay for any issue throughout the entire weekend. The track, which has not had major changes throughout its history, beyond some corners added or reshaped, is currently 3,337 km long and has 19 corners.
MONTE-CARLO, MONACO - MAY 25, 2025 // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool //
In Formula 1, the track layout has had some changes throughout its history to increase safety, and the most notable change in Monaco's history is the shape of the chicane at the tunnel exit, which was super fast in the early days and until the early 1980s.
Now, the chicane forces the cars to enter at slower speeds, but it offers a slight chance of overtaking.
Other changes were the addition of the Piscine ‘S’ and La Rascasse for the 1973 race and the new shapes of the Sainte Devote and Anthony Noghes corners from 1976.
The chicane at the tunnel exit was a simple left-right, fast chicane ever since the race was part of the World Championship, but it was changed for the 1986 race, and it has maintained a similar feel since.
Small changes have been made since 1986, but the track has maintained its essence.
Though overtaking is highly difficult at Monaco, the circuit has seen some extraordinary battles in the modern era of Formula 1, especially in the 1992 race between Ayrton Senna and Nigel Mansell, or Max Verstappen's hot pursuit of Lewis Hamilton in the 2019 edition.
An early red flag in the 2024 edition saw every car make tyre changes without any pit stops, which meant that any strategic plan was essentially deleted.
In 2025, two pit stops were mandatory to add some strategic variability, but the race was still linear.
For the 2026 race, there will be one Overtake Mode zone, at the main 'straight' where the Drag Reduction System (DRS) used to be. However, the OM will be activated before the last corner.
The lap records for the track are held by Lando Norris (1:09.954 in the 2025 qualifying - outright record) and Lewis Hamilton with a 1:12.909 for the Fastest Lap during a race (2021).
2026 Monaco Grand Prix - Tyres
The dry tyres for the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix will be the C3 as P Zero White hard, C4 as P Zero Yellow Medium, and C5 as P Zero Red soft.
Pirelli explained their choice with a statement: "The average speed maintained over the 78 laps of the circuit is the lowest of the Formula 1 World Championship: in some sections the cars slow to around 50 km/h.
"From a technical point of view, the Monaco weekend is among the most complex for the teams, who are required to set up their cars with maximum aerodynamic downforce and to focus everything on qualifying in order to secure a good grid position, given that overtaking opportunities are extremely limited.
"For Monaco, the softest tyre range is always selected, this year C3, C4 and C5, to ensure maximum grip on a very smooth asphalt surface. For this edition, the road surface has been resurfaced between Turns 19 and 1, between Turn 7 and the entrance to the tunnel, as well as on the entry to and exit from the pit lane.
"Graining may occur, but it should not significantly affect tyre behaviour, as in the Principality the tyres are subjected mainly to traction-related loads.
"The low level of tyre degradation on the Monaco track traditionally results in a one-stop race. An exception was last year, when the FIA introduced an experimental regulatory change obliging drivers to use at least three different sets of tyres, thereby enforcing at least two pit stops.
"The rule was subsequently abandoned and the classic format returns.
"Strategies are influenced above all by neutralisations and red flags, which are quite frequent given the high probability of contact with the barriers and the difficulty of removing cars without interrupting the race.
"In 2024, for example, a red flag on the opening lap allowed all drivers to immediately comply with the requirement to use both compounds, making it possible to complete the remainder of the Grand Prix with a split strategy between Medium and Hard."
IN 2025
"The race was characterised by the requirement to use at least three different tyre sets, including one from the two mandatory specifications (Medium and Hard).
"Most drivers opted for combinations of Medium and Hard, while the drivers from the six teams that had only one set each of C5 and C4 ran all three compounds (including C6 Soft).
"Stint lengths varied widely: some drivers ran the white-marked tyre for much of the race, while others preferred to split the Grand Prix into three more evenly balanced segments."
2026 Monaco Grand Prix Weather Forecast
Friday, Jun 5th - FP1 & FP2
Conditions: Partly sunny and pleasant
Max. temperature: 25°C
Chance of rain: 3%
Saturday, June 6th - FP3 & Qualifying
Conditions: Mostly sunny and pleasant
Max. temperature: 24°C
Chance of rain: 1%
Sunday, June 7th - Race
Conditions: Mostly cloudy and humid
Max. temperature: 25°C
Chance of rain: 2%
Who will be on the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix Podium?
Monaco is definitely an outlier in the F1 championship calendar, and Ferrari might be well-suited to exploit its car's characteristics.
Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco, 2024 Formula One World Championship - Photo Florent Gooden / DPPI
Of course, packages like the one brought by Mercedes at Montreal proved dominant over the rest of the field, but the SF-26 could perhaps remain the strongest car in the corners.
On the other hand, McLaren has also been improving their cars rapidly, and had locked out the second row in Qualifying in Canada before starting the race with intermediate rain tyres on a dry track.
Red Bull could be a surprise with Max Verstappen, while Isack Hadjar has only shown flashes of his speed so far.
The prediction for the top three of the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix is 1. Charles Leclerc, 2. Lewis Hamilton, 3. Lando Norris.
7 F1 Fan comments on “2026 Monaco GP Preview: Ferrari's Best Chance?”
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I hope verstappen can show his talent and sneak into back into the championship like a ninja!
That would be simply lovely, but he also might thing he couldn't care less about winning this pathetic 2026 woke F1 tile!
The total ban on active aero use is excessive, given that DRS always had an activation zone on the main straight, so active aero straight mode is realistically just as safe for that section as DRS, especially since it barely even curves, so zero compromise on car stability, not to mention it’s longer than Albert Park’s T5-T6 & Shanghai’s T10-T11 straights, which both had an SM zone, despite the uselessness of having one on such a short blast & excessive extra workload, so all in all, contradictory argumentations.
The safety argument is also somewhat weak since they happily placed an activation zone on Suzuka’s back straight, despite the excessive risk with 130R, given the ever-present possibility of a system glitch that causes the wings to remain open or flat when trying to deactivate shortly before the turning point, so 100% about luck that nothing happened without pre-guarantees, which isn’t how things should be handled, but by acting in a precautionary manner to eliminate all possible unintended consequences altogether.
No full-throttle section that features or ends in a flat-out corner or kink should have a zone for a device that reduces aero load, given the risks with such corners & kinks, although I already know for certain that Spa-Francorchamps’ back stretch with Blanchimont won’t have an activation zone, & neither should the straight between La Source & Eau Rouge since the Eau Rouge-Raidillon combination is the worst place of all for a system glitch to happen, not to mention DRS was permanently disabled for that straight even in practice & qualifying running in its first two seasons when usage was largely unrestricted in non-race sessions.
Ironically, Monaco’s tunnel section is the only other one for which DRS was permanently disabled in these sessions in the same seasons; hence, I’m more than happy that FIA decided against placing an activation zone there, & for that matter, also the run towards Massenet with the Beau Rivage kinks & bumps, although DRS was activatable in 2011 & 2012 non-race sessions.
Otherwise, I don’t care an awful lot about the total ban since active aero has proved pretty useless overall, nor does it even improve racing quality, so the sooner it’s gone altogether, the better.
Capping the electric power cut at 200 km/h is also something I’m indifferent about, especially given Monaco’s ever-existing overtaking issues, but also the fact that Monaco is by far the most harvesting-friendly circuit in F1.
Btw, OT doesn’t have any designated zones as it’s usable throughout a lap, starting from the activation point until the next time reaching the detection point, meaning that the driver who gets to use extra boost in a race or sprint can simply use it anywhere he pleases, rather than only on a single section or the main straight, & in most cases, drivers wait until the longest full-throttle section, so the tunnel section in Monaco’s case.
While last season’s three-set minimum was hastily applied based on unusual circumstances of an early suspension, people should be mindful not to complain because the only practical difference between this & the standard two-compound minimum is that the tactics used by VCARB, Williams, & Mercedes last season will simply be done once rather than twice by a given team, like in 2024.
Finally, for my top 3 prediction, I also have Lando for P3 & Ferrari taking a 1-2, but the other way around.
To sum up, teams make their cars go as fast as possible and employ the worlds best drivers to get them over the finish line in the fastest time possible. The rule makers make as many rules as possible to make them feel important.
Basically
I just want to know how much a pizza and 2 beers are there, is that to much to ask ffs.....
If you need to ask you can’t afford it.
Or
A friend went about five years ago and three days doing it on a budget cost him about £6000.
Thats it then , sarnies, couple of pork pies, bag of ready salted and a flask and im sorted..!