F1 | Megaride simulation: in Munich you need load and traction

After the thrilling Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix on the Imola circuit last Sunday, F1 immediately returns to the track on the most famous and characteristic street circuit in the world for the Monaco Grand Prix. That of the Principality, now in its seventieth edition of the F1 World Championship, is a historic and prestigious stage: winning here is probably every driver’s dream due to its legend and its difficulty. Together with the victory at Le Mans and Indianapolis, it gives the driver the so-called “Triple Crown”.

The Monte Carlo track is the shortest circuit of the entire championship with its 3.337 km and is also the track with the lowest average speed due to its twistiness and a particularly narrow roadway, characteristics that make this circuit unique.

Precisely because of its unique characteristics, the cars have specific aerodynamic solutions to achieve the high downforce required. Among the other specific solutions worth mentioning is the increased turning radius, to better deal with some extremely tight curves such as the hairpin in turn 6.

• The temperature graph does not show any major thermal stress on the tires thanks to the low average speed per lap. For the front tires, temperature peaks can be noted in Turn 1, Saint Devote; turn 10, Novelle Chicane, and turn 15, in the swimming pool area. The rears, on the other hand, are more involved when exiting slow corners where a lot of traction is required. The brakes are put under greater strain due to the large number of bends and the few straights.
• Also for this weekend Pirelli has chosen the softest set at its disposal: C3-C4-C5. This choice is linked to the low abrasion of the circuit and the low tangential stresses involved.
• The expected grip level will be highly variable, as often happens on street circuits: low at the start of the weekend and gradually increasing in the following sessions. The minor championship competitions also help raise grip levels.

MegaRide chart, Monaco GP

Photo credit: MegaRide

The Monaco track is not very aggressive on the tires with extremely low levels of wear. The wear levels for the rear tires are slightly higher due to the high traction required at the exit of the numerous slow corners such as the hairpin in Turn 6, the chicane after the tunnel in Turn 9 and the chicanes in the swimming pool area.

Due to the near impossibility of overtaking, race strategies and, even more so, qualifying will be fundamental. A one-stop race is therefore expected thanks to the low expected wear and to reduce the number of pit stops to a minimum.