Nico looking for his third Monaco crown
PICTURE: GETTY IMAGES
NICO Rosberg will look to carry the momentum of his win in Spain two weeks ago into the demanding streets of Monaco this Sunday - a Grand Prix which he’s won for the past two years running.
He’s got the goods to do it too, with a Mercedes package that’s proven dominant in all but one race so far this year. His team says the tight and twisty third timing sector at Barcelona, where the Merc showed an advantage over other teams’ cars last time out, is indicative of what’s in store at this weekend’s street circuit where it expects to replicate performance.
Rosberg’s biggest challenge, however, will come from pointsleading team-mate and current champ Lewis Hamilton who’s so far shown an upper hand with three wins already this season. Lewis, who’s only Monaco win came in 2008, will this year look for retribution after a sneaky tactic from Nico at this race in 2014. Last year, Nico controversially ran wide during qualifying at Turn 5 (Mirabeau) and then reversed back onto the track necessitating yellow flags and subsequently forcing Lewis to abort his flying lap. Rosberg, who had already set the fastest time, was then gifted pole position.
It’s notoriously difficult to overtake at Monaco, and whichever driver manages to secure pole this Saturday will start with the biggest advantage. While it’s likely Mercedes will be the team to beat, other drivers such as Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, the only other to win a race this year, will hope to spring surprise attacks in qualifying in attempts to keep cars with quicker race pace behind them on Sunday. But eking out an extra tenth of a second can be risky business at a street circuit like this, where perimeter walls can snare wheels and break suspension in the blink of an eye.
Monaco has a history of shuffling the pecking order, and some unexpected results could be on the cards. Fernando Alonso, who has endured a torrid start to the year with the new McLaren Honda, predicts the first points haul this weekend for his under-performing team. “I think we will get points in Monaco,” said the former Champion and Monaco winner in 2006 and 2007. “Our simulations until the retirement in Barcelona put us in ninth place, so that was already the first opportunity to get the points. In Monaco it will be the second.
“From now on we will always be on the limit of the 10th place for the next two or three races. Hopefully after Austria we will be more secure - seventh, eighth place I hope. That's the target.”
The Monaco Grand Prix will air live on Supersport 2 at 1.30pm on Sunday.
PICTURE: EPA