With poor grip levels and zero margin of tolerance, Monaco features among the most challenging circuits in F1, but it’s also a track which Fernando Alonso appreciates, having collected two wins in the glamorous Principality.
The Spaniard will once again have his work cut out for him next weekend, as McLaren-Honda continue to evolve but with still a steep performance hill to climb.
But at a venue which takes no prisoners in the event of a mishap and often produces random results – just like its nearby famous casino – Alonso may just find himself on the receiving end of some good fortune.
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But it will all start in qualifying on Saturday when the McLaren driver will need to pull out all the stops in order to secure the very best spot on Sunday’s grid.
“The most obvious characteristic of the Monaco circuit is that qualifying is probably more important there than at any other track,” Alosno admits.
“Getting through to Q3 in Barcelona for the first time since the McLaren-Honda partnership was reunited was definitely a boost for the team, so our aim, of course, will be to replicate that to give ourselves the best possible chance in Monaco. “
“It’s a real challenge to get the set-up right for Monaco because of its unique characteristics, but often we see some unpredictable racing there because the nature of it tends to shuffle the pack up.
“I’m optimistic that we can dial-in our car to suit the track because we have a very well-balanced chassis, so it will be interesting to see how we measure up when the circuit’s characteristics are more likely to play to our strengths.”
The Monaco Grand Prix is often the shortest race of the year in terms of sheer time spent out on the race track, but the difficulties of the treacherous layout more than make up for that.
And if one throws in the odd stretch of bad weather which often descends from the mountains and envelops the busy harbor, the challenge is boosted two-fold and so are the chances of a shortened afternoon.
“Monaco is a very demanding race, so reliability and strategy will be key in order to maximise the potential in our chassis and power unit at this circuit.
“After a disappointing result in the race in Spain, I’m pleased to see that our work completed at the test was encouraging, so I hope that can translate to a positive performance for the whole team next weekend. It’s definitely one of the best races of the year.”
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