With overtaking being notoriously difficult in Monaco, the pole position is typically a game-changer. Yet, McLaren’s team boss Andrea Stella isn’t writing off their chances of victory, even though they didn’t snag the top spot.
Charles Leclerc, starting from pole, is undoubtedly in a favorable position for the Monaco GP. If he manages a clean start and leads into the first corner, he’ll have a significant advantage thanks to the track’s processional nature, which makes overtaking extremely tough.
Drivers can easily maintain their positions and manage their pace, minimizing the risk of tire degradation leading to a drop down the order. The undercut strategy, which involves pitting earlier than the car ahead to gain an advantage, is also less effective here. As Pirelli’s chief engineer Simone Berra explains, ‘It’s not really powerful because the hard tire takes about half a lap to reach optimal temperature. So, even if you pit a lap later, you can still stay ahead of the car that stopped before you.’
With the medium tire’s pitstop window around lap 25 to 35, strategic plays are limited. Berra’s assessment is clear: ‘Unfortunately, in terms of strategies here, we know Monaco is quite a unique circuit.’
Despite these constraints, Andrea Stella believes there are opportunities for McLaren. Safety cars, red flags, and tire graining could all play a role in shaking up the race order. Stella notes, ‘We always think about it as a procession, but actually there are safety cars and we could have a red flag. Last year we saw phases where people went through the graining. It’s not necessarily that this leads to overtaking, but you need the pace at a certain stage because the gap to pit may open up.’
Another advantage for McLaren is having two cars close to the front, with Oscar Piastri starting second and Lando Norris a couple of places back. This gives the team more strategic options. However, Stella is cautious: ‘Certainly, having two cars close to the lead will give us some more possibilities, but at this track, you would never take these possibilities if it meant that you would end up in traffic. There are not as many possibilities as normal, but still, the race can be quite eventful. So, rather than approaching it like it will be a procession, we approach it like there can be many scenarios, and we need to be ready for them.’
McLaren is heading into the Monaco GP with a realistic yet hopeful outlook. While the nature of the track favors those at the front, the team is prepared for various scenarios that could turn the race in their favor.
Source: Motorsport
