F1 at Monaco - some thoughts

[mrfizz]

I don't post on here much but i read a lot of threads, and have been F1 and motorsport nuts for years.

I've had a Bee in my bonnet for years regarding the Monaco Grand Prix. When i say that i mean it's boring and is just an overblown Cannes film festival with cars. All those celebs who get interviewed on the grid, proclaiming to have always been a fan. Well, where are you at Spa or Silverstone when its pi55ing down with rain and it's 10 degrees? Nowhere. EJ summed it up perfectly when he said that when he was running Jordan, the Monaco race was the one race where everybody requested tickets or passes and he had to turn people down. Got it in one Eddie. Only the 'hoi-polloi' or people with over inflated opinions of themselves 'request' tickets. Real fans buy them.

So, my proposal would be to drop the Monaco race from the championship. Instead, and so the glitterati can park their yachts and show off their Rolex's, we could have some sort of F1 style FFord Festival. Non-points scoring but big fat cheques to the winner and podium finishers. Have 20 lap heat races, allow teams to run 3rd or even 4th cars driven by the test drivers or young drivers. Let Pirelli give them super sticky tyres that eat themselves after 10 laps. In other words, make it a one-off show, where it doesn't matter about finishing 5th, only winning. Then Monaco would be worth watching.

Rant over!

[bella]

i have the same problem to a point.

i follow formula renault 3.5 which has a round at monaco, and all of a sudden there's a flood of wealthy looking people in the pitlane, none of whom you see the following weekend at a cold and soggy spa. but it's to enjoy that race at monaco that they throw the money at the sport in the first place, you know? so who are we to begrudge them one event on the calendar when they can swan around? if some friends of a drivers parents want to fund a boy's racing career and ask about coming to monaco then who are we to tell them no, not unless they turn up in wellies at the nurburgring too?

the thing is, these people put a lot of money in and frankly, get not very much back at all. their presence in monaco makes the place look fancy and like an essential event on a social calendar, which brings in the people who indirectly support the event by attending the social events and the bars and stuff. that makes profit for everybody. and at whose cost? theirs. they go away happy, local businesses and event organisers have made a cushy fortune all because wealthy people want to belong to something.

actually monaco is one of the best events for the everyday fan. someone who wants to meet drivers can pretty much meet the entire grid on the wednesday (for nothing, with no tickets), see them in a football match on the tuesday (for €10), walk the circuit as many times as you like, and actually get a feel for the event.

[Paradise City]

Monaco is indispensable [to me anyway] because of its heritage. The presence or lack of thereof of celebrity idiots doesn't enter my calculus whatosever. If I cared what nitwits do with their time for a split second, I'd be giving those nitwits waaay too much respect. Celebrity nitwits will pop up at alot of races anyway particularly in the ME and Britain. If the cars are challenging then Monaco offers a unique challenge not to bin it into the wall while under pressure.

Now I wouldn't want to extend the Monaco model to a second race. Once a year is quite enough but Monaco offers unique challenges combined with its history that should be preserved.

[steve_r]

So to summarise: Get rid of it because it's popular with non-"die-hard" fans.

F1 cars out-grew the Monaco track many years ago, but the race is unique and I would not want to see it dropped in favour of yet another bland tilke circuit, or even worse another dire street-circuit like Valencia.

I do like the idea of a formula ford type festival on that track, or even a goodwood style time trial for a variety of current and historic F1, Indy, Le Mans and rally cars etc around the track. But lets be honest, nothing like that could really replace the Monaco F1 GP.

[mrfizz]

I don't think i explained myself to well! I don't have a problem with celebs and big knobs attending races. You are right in what you say in that their company's no doubt provide sponsorship or other services to motorsport that we don't necessarily see. What i do have a problem with is that seems to be the only reason we (i mean F1) actually race at Monaco. It just seems to be a 'race' weekend where the main focus is on who has the biggest yacht, who is hosting the most lavish party and who has managed to persuade so and so the film star to show up. There is no way that in this day and age, where F1 is trying to improve 'the show' on track that Monaco has a place. After all, the race itself is more like a carnival procession around a very expensive housing estate.

I just think it's a waste of a championship round that could go to a more exciting track somewhere else, where the racing actually counts.

[steve_r]

Last years race was very good IIRC, and would have been even better if it were not for the bizarre tyre rules for restarted races.

Obviously there have been some stinkers over the years, including the one just gone, but you could say that about most tracks - including the mordern tracks that would be representative of the sort of place that would replace Monaco.

[Tourer]

Monaco is about serious committment - it really does seperate drivers in that regard. Not unusual for drivers to be taking paint off the sidewall of the tyres and for those watching, it's an opportunity to see the cars up much closer than the more open tracks, where run off areas tend to be significant and crowd is well back from the cars.

Understand the comments re the jet setters but in reality there are heaps of them at many F1 races - although Monaco is the top of that particular pile. They just don't get the coverage quite as much elsewhere.

I definitely want to keep it as it provides a spectacle of the cars close up, where committment can REALLY be seen and regardless of the hangers on is still a special place as a result.

[bella]

Originally Posted by mrfizz

There is no way that in this day and age, where F1 is trying to improve 'the show' on track that Monaco has a place. After all, the race itself is more like a carnival procession around a very expensive housing estate.

I just think it's a waste of a championship round that could go to a more exciting track somewhere else, where the racing actually counts.

i think i disagree with you on all that. each race has a selling point, and each one is different. monaco is a party, so is singapore really. monza is for the tifosi, and it's an aero challenge. spa has ballsy corners, and an awful lot of rain. istanbul had turn 9. japan has the support, and that very serious corner the drivers rave about. barcelona has the city, and the alonso fans. abu dhabi is to court the funding for the sports future.

i think the character of monaco makes it a really important race to continue. i would rather see a race there than 3 hours down the road at ricard for example.

Originally Posted by Tourer

I definitely want to keep it as it provides a spectacle of the cars close up, where committment can REALLY be seen and regardless of the hangers on is still a special place as a result.

something i noticed there this year is that there's two distinctly seperate events going on. there's the spectacle on track, the hard working guys around it, and the people engaged in watching it. as a result of that, though not particularly involved in it is the party scene, the drinking, the partying, the hobnobbing. it's there as a result of the race, but not connected to it. in fact, the vast majority of the partiers won't have a race day ticket, or in many cases do anything but sit on the yacht in dark glasses. ask them who won? they won't really know.

[Paradise City]

When I attended the race I didn't look for nor did I see any celebrity. I'd someone point out a tiny head looking out from the then Benetton garage saying it was Naomi Campbell but that didn't even break my stride. As a TV experience, I don't like watching hours of build-up, I watch 15 minutes before the race and in that 15 minutes they interview as many annoying celebrities as they do at any other race. Celebrities, yachts..etc aren't much part of my Monaco experience whether from my couch or at the race.

If the cars are challenging then the race is challenging. Old Piquet wasn't joking when he is said 'it's like riding a bike is your living room'[sic]. That's a big challenge and worthy of my attention as a race goer as long as those cars are up to the mark and are a serious challenge to drive.

In any event, I'm more satisfied if there is only one or two really hard won moves through seriously skilled driving in a single race then a thousand easy moves on a DRS magic carpet.

[mrfizz]

I'm not denying the fact that the track itself tests the drivers, that only the best win at Monaco because it requires 100% commitment and concentration. But i would prefer to see is that 100% commitment and superior ability rewarded by actually being able to pass someone, rather than giving it everything but being forced to stare at the same rear wing of the car in front all day.

Monaco race prediction = Start. Get through chaos at turn 1. Form an orderly queue. Change tyres. Rejoin queue. Finish.

I know last year was a potentially exciting finish with Vettel's tyres shot and Alonso and Button chasing him down. Would they have actually passed? Probably not.

[luke g28]

What would be good for F1 is to get more circuits where the fans are as close as they are at Monaco and able to walk the track etc. Rather than the car parks they race in atm.

[Bononi]

Originally Posted by mrfizz

So, my proposal would be to drop the Monaco race from the championship. Instead, and so the glitterati can park their yachts and show off their Rolex's, we could have some sort of F1 style FFord Festival. Non-points scoring but big fat cheques to the winner and podium finishers. Have 20 lap heat races, allow teams to run 3rd or even 4th cars driven by the test drivers or young drivers. Let Pirelli give them super sticky tyres that eat themselves after 10 laps. In other words, make it a one-off show, where it doesn't matter about finishing 5th, only winning. Then Monaco would be worth watching.

Send this proposal to Bernie and FIA, let's see what they have to say about it !

[Paradise City]

Originally Posted by mrfizz

I'm not denying the fact that the track itself tests the drivers, that only the best win at Monaco because it requires 100% commitment and concentration. But i would prefer to see is that 100% commitment and superior ability rewarded by actually being able to pass someone, rather than giving it everything but being forced to stare at the same rear wing of the car in front all day.

Monaco race prediction = Start. Get through chaos at turn 1. Form an orderly queue. Change tyres. Rejoin queue. Finish.

I know last year was a potentially exciting finish with Vettel's tyres shot and Alonso and Button chasing him down. Would they have actually passed? Probably not.

My ideal MC race would be second driver pressures first driver into binning it into the barrier, surviving driver wins. If the driver leading should resist the pressures of the driver behind alá Senna with a hard charging Mansell in '92 well, then, that's cracking too. We might have had this year too if Schuey had of started from pole.

[chillibowl]

i dont know if this is true or not, but i think i read somewhere once that Monaco doesn't have to pay any sanctioning fees. thats 20-30 million a year that other venues have to come up with to keep the profit levels where they need to be and thats not fair imo. if i have a problem with this race it would be that.

other than that i think its a great challenge and would love to one day loose my hearing listening too and watching the cars fly through the tunnel.

[Richyy]

This year was the first Monaco GP that I changed my mind ... The constant stories and build up on the TV coverage trying to tell us how glamorous it is, when you look at it its such a daft place crap architecture and flats that cost millions that look awful and the streets are all grubby ..

But what really swung it was proper fans being pushed out of the way so the 6ft4 Will Smith could walk round with no-one within 3 feet of him .. who probably didn't even pay for a ticket.

Plus a McLaren being stuck behind a Caterham all race ? and when out of desperation he tried to pass he crashes .. silly

[barnettracing]

If I had a pound for every time someone said the Monaco Grand Prix shouldn't happen any more...

[Paradise City]

On the issue of celebrity, I miss the good quality celebrities. Stars who had a keen interest and sincere knowledge of the sport. People like Michael Douglas and the late George Harrison. Now it's just vacant non-entities there to be pictured by society mags.

[formerf1champ]

Originally Posted by mrfizz

Monaco race prediction = Start. Get through chaos at turn 1. Form an orderly queue. Change tyres. Rejoin queue. Finish.

Forgetting about the peripheral stuff. Regardless of any criticism you can make or weakness Monaco has. It is a unique challenge (not necessarily harder or easier) that adds value to the both titles. For a similar reason, I'm filthy the old Hockenheim has gone.

Originally Posted by Paradise City

On the issue of celebrity, I miss the good quality celebrities. Stars who had a keen interest and sincere knowledge of the sport. People like Michael Douglas and the late George Harrison. Now it's just vacant non-entities there to be pictured by society mags.

I never knew Michael Douglas likes motorsport that much.

Originally Posted by mrfizz

I know last year was a potentially exciting finish with Vettel's tyres shot and Alonso and Button chasing him down. Would they have actually passed? Probably not.

Probably not? Definitely not.

[JeremySmith]

Monaco is an event more than a race..It's where many of the deals take place that make it possible for us to continue enjoying the sport we love..

So I dont have a problem with it.....

[wnut]

Originally Posted by JeremySmith

Monaco is an event more than a race..It's where many of the deals take place that make it possible for us to continue enjoying the sport we love..

So I dont have a problem with it.....

Bazinga!

Just like Bella said too!

Its a showcase! GP does club racing for celebs in georgeous weather!

[Bononi]

Originally Posted by barnettracing

If I had a pound for every time someone said the Monaco Grand Prix shouldn't happen any more...

That...


There are a dozen or more threads about it in the past.

[Mr V]

Originally Posted by mrfizz

I've had a Bee in my bonnet for years regarding the Monaco Grand Prix. When i say that i mean it's boring and is just an overblown Cannes film festival with cars. All those celebs who get interviewed on the grid, proclaiming to have always been a fan. Well, where are you at Spa or Silverstone when its pi55ing down with rain and it's 10 degrees? Nowhere. EJ summed it up perfectly when he said that when he was running Jordan, the Monaco race was the one race where everybody requested tickets or passes and he had to turn people down. Got it in one Eddie. Only the 'hoi-polloi' or people with over inflated opinions of themselves 'request' tickets. Real fans buy them.

No different to the prawn sandwich brigade at Wembley, not likely to ever have been to Kenilworth Road for example. But that's life, not sure why it worries people so much. Certain events attract "the star's" whilst other events don't. Simple's.

[nicanary]

Originally Posted by Mr V

No different to the prawn sandwich brigade at Wembley, not likely to ever have been to Kenilworth Road for example. But that's life, not sure why it worries people so much. Certain events attract "the star's" whilst other events don't. Simple's.

I seem to recall seeing in a glossy lifestyle mag that it's now considered part of the Euro-jetset "season". You just go to it to be seen, not that you have any interest in the proceedings. I agree - I don't have a problem, except when the TV boys insist on interviewing some vapid celeb just so they can be seen to be hobnobbing. That belongs on other channels.

[chillibowl]

the grid walk in general i find a bit irritating. the drivers and teams are busy either getting ready or answering inane questions about their chances. better they talk to the celebs and other sporting stars then the drivers at that moment imo but i usually skip that whole part anyways.

was it Monaco 2000? when the Red Bull team did a Star Wars promotion and all the pit crew were wearing storm trooper safety helmets. that was cool. if done right the combination of hollywood and F1 can be great. looking forward to seeing what they do (if anything) for Ron Howard's upcoming movie. Monaco seems the natural place to promote it.

[nobster]

Originally Posted by JeremySmith

Monaco is an event more than a race..It's where many of the deals take place that make it possible for us to continue enjoying the sport we love..

So I dont have a problem with it.....

Make it just a historical Grand Prix event then...