The Biggest Racing Feast Of The Year
The biggest racing feast of the year is upon us! Sunday, May 24th, we have the Monaco Grand Prix for breakfast, the Indianapolis 500 for lunch, and the Coca-Cola 600 for dinner. Sadly, the big news for all three will be how will they find the money to survive?
Formula 1 travels to Monaco with the May 29th deadline for 2010 entries looming. Ferrari and Renault have said they will not participate if the FIA sticks with its new voluntary budget cap plus technical freedom rules. On the other hand, some prospective teams have said they will enter F1 under those rules. It wouldn’t be surprising if some of the other marginal teams choose to drop out if there is no budget cap. Ferrari has gone so far as to sue the FIA in a French court. A ruling is expected on Wednesday, May 20th. I guarantee that won’t be the end of the story.
Monaco is old school motor racing. It’s dangerous. If it weren’t Monaco, they wouldn’t dream about racing on this track. Every year they talk about why it isn’t safe to race here and then go do it anyway. It still inspires video games, with its tunnel, casino and fountain, impossibly tight corners, and the run along the gigantic yachts in the harbour. Drivers want to win this race, maybe even more than winning the World Championship itself.
Fergie Would Be Proud
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It’s glamorous, as no other race ever could be or ever will be. Monaco is about spectacle, about seeing and being seen. Celebrities that don’t seem to care much about racing miraculously appear for this race. Lots of them. Local hotels that are outrageously expensive the rest of the year become obscene for the week of the Grand Prix. In 2004, the Jaguar cars carried Steinmetz diamonds as part of a promotion for the soon-to-be released Ocean’s Twelve movie. One diamond was lost after a crash and I don’t believe it was ever recovered. This year, Steinmetz will once again put diamonds safely (?) in the helmets of McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen, instead of in the nose cones of the cars. The yachts in the harbour are unbelievable. Several rival the technical sophistication and operating budgets of even the biggest teams.
Formula 1 is known as the series with little passing and Monaco is the prime example. You have to qualify at the front if you want to win. Yet it is far from boring! It’s a brutally difficult track to drive around, even without other cars. There are a few overtaking opportunities, if you’re willing to risk your life, and every year a few drivers do.
The big story, on track at least, will again be whether anyone can compete with Brawn. Red Bull seems oh-so-close and Toyota has shown signs now and then. The subplot will be whether Brawn can compete with itself. After years playing a supporting role to Michael Schumacher, Reubens Barrichello is adamant that he will not be Jenson Button’s understudy. The sub-subplot will be how much longer Brawn can go without a major sponsor.
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