The Principality might be smaller than Central Park, but it is certainly way nicer to look at. While Central Park has big grey skyscrapers frowning upon it from all sides, Monaco has the hills of southern France and the bright blue Mediterranean providing one of the most spectacular backdrops for any race in the world.
One of the things that makes this weekend such a spectacular one for racing fans is that two of the oldest events in motorsports history are being run on the same day, mere hours apart; while the 500-Mile Race in Indianapolis is celebrating its 93rd running, it was 80 years ago that Anthony Noges first laid out a track on the streets of the Principality. Sure, Monaco has the fancy casino, the fancy hotels, the fancy shopping, and the fancy apartments. Hell, the Principality was represented internationally by actress Grace (a most well-deserved first name) Kelly, who was married to Prince Ranier III in 1956. However, would the Principality be where it is today without the Grand Prix, which showcases the riches and landscape of the place to an international audience? Formula One cars have a place in the landscape of this fabulous place in the same way that gambling, flashy jewelry, and well-tailored tuxedos.
There is only one problem, but it's a bit of a doozy: this is easily the worst race on the Formula One calendar. The streets of Monaco, already narrow when they were first shut in March, 1929, have been lined with ARMCO barriers, re-profiled numerous times, and constantly encroached upon by new construction. Where there was once a wide avenue between the Tabac corner and the ultra-tight Gasworks Hairpin, there is now a swimming pool that the track goes around and the Restaurant Rascasse, which lends its name to the hairpin turn that goes around it. Further upstream, where there was once a quick left-right chicane lined with car-friendly hay bails, there is now a tight, bus-stop-style complex. In fact, of all the "improvements" made to the track, the only one to widen the road and make the track easier to navigate was a re-profiling of the treacherous Ste-Devote corner, the first of the lap. This may be the shortest lap on the Formula One calendar, but it's also the slowest; the average speed usually hovers around the 100-mph mark.
In the long run, though, none of this matters. Monaco attracts the best of the best in sponsors and celebrities. The track is lined on one side with well-dressed people hanging off of apartment balconies, and on the other side by barely-dressed people on the fanciest of fancy yachts, and everyone is quaffing the best champagne or the best liquors possible. There is a mystique about the race through the narrow streets that is hard to match at any other event in the world. To win Monaco is to take the greatest crown in European motorsport.
Looking into the crystal ball (or weather.com), I discover that this weekend's race will likely not exhibit the one characteristic that makes an F1 race at Monaco interesting: rain. If the track is dry, the race will likely be predictable and easy to figure out once the cars are sorted through Ste-Devote on the first lap.
We should have known that, even though Emperor-Of-Pit-Lane Ross Brawn traded in his red robes for white ones, Brawn GP would be strong. However, even I thought the team would founder for at least a few weeks before turning into a Ross Brawn-led team. Instead, they only needed about a month to get a car up to speed before blitzing all but one of the opening 5 rounds. A quick look at the practice times from Thursday shows that, yes, the Brawn cars are fast. Even when they have been a bit off in practice, the veteran drivers and veteran team principal step it up a notch in qualifying and the race.
My ultra-official prediction: Jenson Button beats the crowd through Ste-Devote, never looks back, takes the trophy, and really solidifies his lead in the championship.
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