F1 without Monaco will not be F1, warns Leclerc
FERRARI driver Charles Leclerc has told Formula One bosses that the Monaco Grand Prix must stay on the calendar.
Organisers of the sport’s grandest race are locked in discussions with F1’s American owners Liberty Media over a contract extension, and this Sunday’s 78-lap race around the principality is set to be the last unless a new deal is rubber-stamped.
Despite being considered the most glamorous event on the calendar, the two-mile course has remained largely unchanged from the first grand prix staged in 1929, and some have claimed it is no longer fit for purpose in its current guise.
However, Leclerc, 24, born and raised in Monaco, said: “Losing the race would be a bad move for both parties. I have never known Monaco without Formula One, apart from
Covid reasons in 2020. Formula One without Monaco is not Formula One.
“Formula One has historic tracks like Silverstone, Monza and Monaco, too, and Monaco should stay on the calendar. There is no track that comes close to the adrenalin we get here, and for me it is part of F1’s history.”
Despite the uncertainty, it is expected that Liberty, and the race organisers, are close to striking a new deal, with agreement likely to follow in the coming months.
F1’s motorsport boss Ross Brawn has explored ways of adapting the tight and twisty track, but alterations would require the full support of Automobile Club de Monaco.
Leclerc, who has won two races this season and trails championship leader Max Verstappen by six points, added: “F1 needs to go to the best tracks, but I really think Monaco is one of them. In terms of qualifying there is no place I enjoy as much as I do here. You feel the danger because you have the sensation of speed. It is one of the toughest tracks for us.”