The organisers of the Monaco Grand Prix have said the race will remain on the Formula One calendar as the sport looks to accommodate new meetings. The street circuit’s contract ends this year but the president of the Automobile Club de Monaco, Michel Boeri, is confident a new deal will be agreed.
Monte Carlo hosted its first F1 race in the series’ opening year in 1950 and has become globally recognised for its track laid out on the city’s winding streets. However, the course is no longer suited to modern F1 cars and the race is often an uneventful procession.
In the past, such was the prestige of the event, the race was not required to pay a hosting fee, an arrangement ended by F1’s new owners, Liberty Media. F1 recently concluded a deal to hold a race in Las Vegas next year and are expected to add one at Kyalami in South Africa soon. With a season capped at 24 races, there is increasing pressure on meetings to justify their position. F1’s chief executive, Stefano Domenicali, warned that the “pedigree” of a race would not guarantee its place and that some events could be rotated on and off the schedule.
With this year’s race scheduled for 29 May, Boeri maintained that Monaco would retain its spot. Speaking to race marshals this week, he said: “It was implied that the fees required were too excessive for Monaco and that the grand prix would no longer be held. That’s untrue. We are still in talks with them and must now seal the deal with a contract.
“I can guarantee you that the grand prix will keep taking place beyond 2022. I don’t know if it will be a three- or five-year contract, but that’s a detail.”
Meanwhile, the FIA has reacted to criticism from drivers about the speed of the Aston Martin safety car at the Australian Grand Prix. The reigning champion, Max Verstappen, was outspoken in his disapproval, noting that the drivers could not maintain tyre temperature behind it. “The safety car was driving so slow, it was like a turtle. Unbelievable,” he said. “It’s pretty terrible the way we are driving behind the safety car at the moment.”
Other drivers joined his complaints, if with a lighter tone. Mercedes’ George Russell pointed out that he believed the Mercedes safety car was five seconds a lap quicker, to which race winner, Charles Leclerc, noted that a Ferrari version would be even faster.
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The FIA hit back by issuing a statement on Thursday, highlighting that it was not a performance issue with the Aston Martin. “The primary function of the safety car is not outright speed, but the safety of the drivers, marshals and officials,” they said. “The speed of the safety car is therefore generally dictated by race control, and not limited by the capabilities of the safety cars.”
The Haas team, which dropped its title sponsor the Russian Uralkali company and driver Nikita Mazepin after the invasion of Ukraine, has responded to their claim for a return of payments with a forthright rejection and a counterclaim. The team is understood to have dismissed Uralkali’s request for $13m (£9.95m) and instead demanded $8.6m compensation for “loss of profits”.