Monaco Grand Prix Special Feature.

Historic, unique, glamorous, all words that come to mind when we think of the Monaco Grand Prix, but what makes it so special?

History

It's the jewel in the crown of the Formula 1 calendar, this tight and twisty street circuit is rich in history and has been regular fixture of the world championship since 1955. The first race in Monaco was way back in 1929 and was organised by Anthony Noghes, with the winner of that first race William Grover-Williams racing a Bugatti.

The streets of this beautiful principality have always posed a great challenge to any driver who ever raced around here, it's a race every driver wants to win. Getting you name on the list of winners is always a great achievement, but Monaco is something even more special. Triple F1 world champion Nelson Piquet was once quoted as saying Monaco was “like trying to cycle around your living room”, but adding that, “a win here is worth two anywhere else”.

There have only been a few drivers to win this race multiple times, but in the 1960's, Graham Hill won the Monaco Grand Prix 5 times. It was an incredible achievement in a time when safety was almost non existent. Fires and serious crashes often caused mayhem in this period of racing, tragically death was not uncommon. Graham Hill was a real champion racer, because of his success around Monaco, he became known as Mr Monaco. It was a record that some never thought would be broken, but one Brazilian driver mastered the streets of Monaco like no one ever thought possible.

Ayrton Senna, the master of Monaco.

Arguably the best driver ever in Formula 1, Ayrton Senna mastered these tight and twisty streets in a way no one had ever imagined. He is to this day the most successful driver around this circuit, winning 6 times in his Formula 1 career, he had 8 podium finishes in his 10 years of racing here, what's more, he took 5 consecutive victories between 1989 and 1993. It's a record that no one has come close to since. But the style in which he raced between the Armco barriers was what impressed people most. It takes immense skill to complete a fast lap, the concentration needed to pin point the car into every apex just inches from the barriers is quite simply unbelievable. Ayrton Senna however, was almost super human. His rivals would be able to take a few tenths off a lap time, Senna however would take full seconds off per lap. Watching archive footage of his onboard laps is incredible, taking every corner perfectly, as fast as possible, manually changing gear, the concentration and focus required to do this for one lap is unimaginable, let alone for an entire race. He truly was the master of Monaco.

The Circuit Safety

The layout of the street circuit has hardly changed since the first race in 1929, with only a few additions and alterations. Many of the changes came in the 1970’s after concerns over safety, Sir Jackie Stewart was behind the efforts to improve safety in the sport. In this era, some races had been cancelled altogether as tracks were just too dangerous to race on. In 1972, almost the entire Monaco circuit was lined with Armco barriers. Before there was nothing to stop cars crashing into road signs, walls and even the harbour, it was perilous. The following year, there were more alterations as the swimming pool complex was added, meaning a new Pit Lane facility could be constructed which further improved safety standards. Even today there are changes made as we saw last year after Sergio Perez and Nico Rosberg both had heavy crashes in 2011. The road surface on the exit of the tunnel has been renewed, particularly in the braking zone to the chicane. In addition the new TecPro barriers have been moved back to increase safety once again.

Modern Monaco

It’s still the challenge it has always been, it demands total concentration and focus to master. It’s a magical place, a glamorous place, the same as it always has been. Racing here is a spectacle, but unfortunately not as exciting as it once was. That’s not really the fault of the circuit, that's hardly changed, the sport has changed unrecognisably over the decades. Overtaking is virtually impossible with only 2 real overtaking places, first in turn 1, and later in the lap on the exit of the tunnel. With the streets so narrow, it's extremely difficult for even the best drivers to safely overtake.

The best thing about the Monaco Grand Prix is just seeing the cars blasting between the barriers, with the pavement and shops a short distance the other side of the Armco. The bumps and manhole covers making for a bumpy ride in the low riding F1 cars. Setting the cars up here is actually quite simple, maximum downforce and close gear ratios is what's required, the rest is simply down to the skill and concentration of the driver.

Why Monaco is Special

There are many reasons why this is such a special race in the calendar, it's actually special for different reasons depending on who you talk to. Some say it's because of the history, others say because of the challenge it poses, while the glamour is the reason for others.

Here's why it's special for me, as a young boy I had quite a few holidays in the south of France and Monaco, they are memories I'll never forget and as a car lover from a very young age, I enjoyed nothing more than walking around Monaco's streets remembering the name of every single corner. Once I even remember boring my parents, by explaining in detail the challenge of the Marabou corner and what the best racing line was. I remember looking from a cafe window down the hill towards Sainte Devote, thinking of Mika Hakkinen racing up in the McLaren.

Monaco is very special to me personally because of these childhood memories, but the history of this race is fascinating and totally unique. There is nothing else quite like it, modern Formula 1 cars racing on the streets of one of the most glamerous places in the world, millimetres from the barriers with absolutely no margin for error.

We may have other street circuits on the F1 calendar now, we may have more to come in the future too, but none of these circuits is anything like Monaco, they are demanding and challenging, but that special feeling that Monaco has is so unique, you wont find it anywhere else.

Monaco Grand Prix weekend, online at Driving For Pleasure

Driving For Pleasure will have full coverage of the 2013 Monaco Grand Prix starting with a preview to the weekends action. As always I'll give you my Pre-Race Pointers and take a closer look at the circuit itself. Sini Salminen will be reporting the GP2 series which returns in Monaco, we have the whole weekend covered right here.

You can follow me on Twitter throughout the entire weekend for Live coverage and the very latest news, @TomWilkinsonF1 #TWF1. Get involved throughout the weekend, interacting with the fans is what I like. Ask me anything F1 related during the FP3 session on Saturday, just tweet me your question with the hash tag #TWF1.