Will the teams use their improvements planned for Imola in Monaco?

La Formula 1 is an environment in which the organization is always meticulous, down to the millimeter, with planning often orchestrated months in advance. So obviously, the cancellation of a Grand Prix, whatever the reasons, is always a little nightmare for the chief logisticians, who have to deal with big unforeseen events and reshape everything.

The Imola deadline, moreover, is not quite a round like the others. For logistical and financial reasons, teams have in fact gotten into the habit in recent years of bringing their first big updates during the first European Grand Prix of the year. Which should therefore have been the case of the round contested on the Enzo e Dino circuit Ferrari before F1 canceled it following the bad weather which ravaged Emilia-Romagna. 

The cancellation therefore posed a few headaches for everyone, since the next round is none other than... Monaco, an urban route, the slowest on the calendar and with a narrowness that does not forgive any error. In other words, anything but the right place to mount updates and test them. Firstly because they are difficult to test on an unusual circuit unlike any other, and above all because of the high risk of crash it involves, with a limited number of parts provided by the teams, and a limited budget. which does not really allow teams to produce in quantity. 

Mercedes stays the course 

If Barcelona had been on the program straight after Imola, the situation would undoubtedly have been simpler. But the schedule is what it is, and the teams will have to deal with Monaco. The most anticipated new package at Imola was clearly that of Mercedes, which almost promised a new car, after Toto wolff qualified the car of his team"execrable" at the start of the season.

Despite the unique character of Monte-Carlo, Mercedes is expected to bring its updates to the Principality, with a return to the previous configuration being very difficult from a logistical point of view. The W14 will therefore inaugurate its new sidepods, its revised floor, and its new front suspension, all with the aim of bringing more stability to the car's platform. The data collection will also allow the team to arrive in Barcelona the following week with a better understanding of their new package. 

Ferrari to its advantage in Monaco?

For its part, Ferrari has already released its new floor in Miami, and could also bring a new suspension to Monaco, so as to make the SF-23 less unpredictable in fast corners. Leclerc's driving qualities on street circuits (he is the reigning double pole-sitter in Monaco), as well as the Ferrari's intrinsic qualities in slow corners should benefit the Scuderia. 

Despite two pole positions, Charles Leclerc never won at home in Monaco. © Antonin Vincent / DPPI

Among those for which updates are also expected, Alpha Tauri should also stick to what it had decided for Imola, while the Faenza team has been plagued by major sporting difficulties since the start of the year. In this case, it should equip its two cars with a new floor in order to improve the weakness of the AT04 in slow corners. 

The first European Grand Prix of the year is often the moment chosen by everyone to relaunch a dynamic, it is a safe bet that other teams will also bring new pieces. But beware of the proximity to the walls and the narrowness of the track, what's more on modified single-seaters that the drivers will not all have full control over. In Monaco, there will perhaps be more to lose than to gain, and this time, the three free practice sessions should not be too much.

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