Monaco GP before the end?
Contract expires after the race
Created: 05/29/2022, 2:30 p.m
By: Christoph Klaucke
Formula 1 is making a stop in the Principality at the weekend – but for how long?
The future of the Monaco Grand Prix is uncertain.
Monaco – glitter, stars and glamor in the Principality: The Monaco Grand Prix has always been one of the highlights in Formula 1. For the 68th time, the premier class of motorsport will be racing through the small Principality this coming weekend, past outrageously expensive yachts in the harbour the French Riviera.
A spectacle, but for how much longer?
The contract with Formula 1 ends this year.
Formula 1: Mick Schumacher for whereabouts of Monaco GP
For Mick Schumacher, whose father Michael Schumacher won the classic five times, it would be "a real shame" to lose the race.
The 23-year-old referred to the "Triple Crown" of motorsport: victories in Monaco, the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans are considered the king's challenges.
It's hard to imagine if the crown were missing a tooth.
Despite the poor overtaking opportunities and the route, which has remained almost unchanged since 1929, the race has been very popular among drivers since the F1 premiere in 1950.
"I don't think Monaco can be replaced," says Max Verstappen, after all the reigning world champion - and a resident of the tax haven on the Cote d'Azur.
The fantastic view of the Formula 1 track in Monte Carlo.
© Dmitry Rukhlenko/Imago
Formula 1: Monaco race before the end?
Team bosses criticize the Grand Prix
At the latest when the Dutchman, Lewis Hamilton and Co. race up and down the notorious Strip in Las Vegas under floodlights in autumn 2023, it will be discussed whether Monaco is still the glamor Grand Prix of Formula 1.
And there are already doubts as to whether the Monaco GP has a future in Formula 1.
"We cannot live in the past," says Mick Schumacher's Haas team boss Günther Steiner.
"If Monaco wanted to be included as a new track and they say: Well, we have the lowest entry fee of all tracks and you go where you can't overtake - Monaco would never be on the racing calendar," emphasized Red Bull team boss Christian Horner, true to the motto: "Standing still is a step backwards."
Formula 1: Monaco pays the lowest fee in the racing calendar
You have to "weigh up" the relationship between new races and historic Grands Prix, said Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali before the start of the season.
The offers of new organizers would force the organizers of traditional races to "raise their level of quality".
It is said that 30 races could be held without any problems, but the maximum limit is 24. Formula 1, under the leadership of the American media group Liberty Media, has long since shifted up a gear.
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It is an open secret that Monaco ranks at the bottom of the table when it comes to entry fees – the premier class of motorsport has so far been too dependent on the glamor of the race.
According to a report by
Racingnews365
, Monaco only has to pay around $15 million in annual entry fees, with all other Formula 1 venues paying between $22 million and $55 million.
Formula 1 breaks with tradition in Monaco
This weekend shows that Formula 1 is also breaking with tradition in Monaco.
For decades, the pilots in the Principality always practiced on Thursdays.
The reason: The training day often fell on Ascension Day, so Friday was always (noise) free.
Training will be on Friday this year.
Point.
Formula 1 without Monaco is and remains unimaginable.
Nevertheless, the organizers have to adapt to the circumstances so that the race itself provides more entertainment.
And the financial realities are likely to catch up with the Monaco Automobile Club soon.
All broadcast dates of the Formula 1 season on TV and stream can be found here in the overview.
(ck/dpa/sid)
