The Monaco Grand Prix has been a relatively happy hunting ground for the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 Team, Lewis Hamilton winning the last race held in the principality and the team taking 5 victories, 5 poles and 10 podiums in 11 race starts.
As a whole the potential season-long battle between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton has posed challenges for both sides and even though mistakes were made at the Spanish Grand Prix coming home with a first and a third position is particularly pleasing for the Austrian Team Principal.
“The first couple of races have provided us with both wheel-to-wheel and strategic battles for victory. Spain was far from a perfect weekend for us and there are lots of learnings to take forward, but nevertheless, to come back from a 2-4 on lap one and score a 1-3 was a very strong result and one we can be proud of as a team.”
There really are no other Grand Prix’s on the calendar like the Monaco Grand Prix, practice sessions take place on the Thursday and the race can be even watched by those not on land, as Kimi Räikkönen infamously showed in the 2006 edition of the race. Wolff is really looking forward to the challenges that the principality throws at both the drivers and the team. With Red Bull Racing being so quick at the twisty sector 3 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya this could bode well for them and as always the German outfit will have to be at the top of their game.
“Next up is Monaco. There’s really no race like it and it was hugely missed last year – we can’t wait to be back in action on the streets of Monte Carlo! It’s such a unique, intense weekend for the drivers and the team, with no margin for error. It puts the fire under your ass, and we love the challenge! Monaco is a high downforce track and we know that’s a key strength of Red Bull. They were very quick in sector three in Spain and that’s often a good indication of strong performance in Monaco.”
Even though Red Bull will most likely be the team to beat come Saturday and Sunday there will almost certainly be competition from some of the other teams who sit near the top off the midfield on performance terms, but that is what Grand Prix racing is all about at the end of the day.
“So, we head into the weekend knowing they are the team to beat, whilst also knowing we’ll face strong competition from some of the other teams, too. But, just like the season so far, we’re enjoying the hunt.”
2019 was a mixed bag of emotions for Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton may have won the Grand Prix in somewhat extraordinary circumstances but it was shortly after the death of multiple world-champion Niki Lauda who was heavily involved in the team and indeed bringing the victor that day to the team in the first place.
“The last time we were racing in Monaco was shortly after Niki’s passing. So, he won’t be far from our thoughts this year, either.”
It is important for all fans to remember that Free Practice 1 and Free Practice 2 are held on the Thursday, due to the shops opening up on a Friday and Free Practice Sessions are definitely not to be missed at a track like Monaco!
