From Friday 24 to Sunday 26 May 2024, the Principality will once again play host to the most famous motor race of them all: the 81st Monaco Formula 1 Grand
Prix.
Experience the thrill of elite motor sport, like nowhere else...
International recognition…
In his efforts to obtain
official recognition for the Automobile Club de Monaco from the Association
Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus, Antony Noghès, son of the ACM's
President, drew on all his powers of imagination to create a street race in the
Principality itself. The race satisfied the AIACR's requirement for an event
held within the limited confines of Monaco (which at the time covered barely
1.5 km²).
With help from engineer Jacques Taffe and Louis Chiron, former personal driver
of Marshals Foch and Pétain...
He succeeded.
No other country in the
world would ever have a circuit quite like it!
On 14 April 1929, Prince
Pierre officially opened the circuit of the 1st Monaco Grand Prix, doing a lap
of honour in a Torpedo Voisin driven by race director Charles Faroux.
That inaugural Grand
Prix was won by Englishman William Grover-Williams, nicknamed “W Williams”,
driving a green Bugatti 35 B, with a time of 3'56’11. He completed the 100 laps
at an average speed of 80.194 km/h.
From that point on, the
Monaco Grand Prix took off and went from strength to strength.
Formula 1 and the big names arrive in Monaco...
After the ninth Grand Prix
in 1937, World War Two interrupted the event for more than ten years.
It was not until 16 May 1948 that the almost forgotten roar of the racing cars
was heard once again in the streets of the Principality.
Things were back on track, so to speak, and the Formula 1 World Championship
was created two years later, in 1950. On 21 May, an Argentine driver took the
chequered flag in in the 11th Monaco Grand Prix. That driver was none other
than the great Juan-Manuel Fangio.
In the
1960s and 70, Graham Hill, Jackie Stewart, and Niki Lauda all claimed glory in
the Principality, before making way for a legendary duel between Frenchman and
Brazilian in the 80s and 90s, as Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna locked horns.
Senna still holds the record for most race wins in Monaco, with six.
Michael Schumacher was also a winner of the Monaco
Grand Prix. In fact, the "Red Baron" looked set to establish
uncontested supremacy in the Principality, but a series of errors and technical
issues limited the German legend to "just" five race wins, between
1994 and 2001.
One of the most challenging circuits...
“Driving in Monaco is like
riding a bicycle around your living room.”
The memorable remark
by Nelson Piquet, World Champion in 1981, 1983 and 1987, perfectly
encapsulates the difficulty of this Grand Prix.
Over the course of 78 laps
of a 3.337 km circuit, featuring chicanes, a tunnel, and 19 tight corners
between the protective barriers, the drivers need to be inch-perfect from start
to finish!
The Fairmont hairpin, situated at the halfway point, requires the drivers to
slow to 45 or 50 km/h, and is the slowest turn of the season.
It's a challenge that every driver wants to take on, but requires them to use
every ounce of their talent and demands surgical precision.
There are no runoff areas between the track and the barriers, so cranes must be
installed in various locations to remove retired cars as quickly as possible.
The stewards of the Automobile Club de Monaco are viewed as being among the
best in the world, for their speed and efficiency.
On home turf...
Monegasque
driver Charles Leclerc knows every inch of the circuit better than anyone. Born
in the Principality, it is always important for him to do well here. Contracted
to Ferrari since 2019, he is the third Monegasque driver to compete in Formula
1, after Louis Chiron and Olivier Beretta.
Other Formula 1 drivers have just a short walk from
their front door to the paddock in Monaco, including Lewis Hamilton, from whom
the Principality and its Grand Prix are a particular favourite.
Formula 1 set to stay in the Principality
The Monaco Formula 1 Grand
Prix will remain on the calendar until at least 2025, under a new three-year
deal between Automobile Club de Monaco and Formula 1.
We
are delighted to be back next season to continue our partnership together. In
the interests of the Formula 1 World Championship, and after months of
negotiations, we are pleased to announce that we have signed a renewable
three-year agreement with Formula 1
Michel Boeri / President of the Automobile Club de Monaco
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1,800 new parking spaces
Spectators arriving by car can now enjoy easier access to the circuit and special rates by using the new "Parking des Salines" car park at the western entrance to the Principality, opposite the Exotic Garden.
From the car park, it's just a 15 minute walk to the circuit via the Galerie des Salines. Simply follow the signposts. Alternatively, use one of the free shuttle buses laid on by Monaco's bus operator CAM. You will just need to show your car park ticket on boarding.
The buses will run ever ten minutes from 8 am to 8 pm, between the Parking des Salines and Avenue Albert II in Fontvieille. Spectators can then walk to the Place d'Armes and the F1 circuit in minutes, or use the elevators.
Spectators with reduced mobility are encouraged to use this solution if possible.
For more details, visit the car park website: Parking des Salines
Who will be the next Prince of Monaco's streets?
For more information, visit the ACM website