F1 drivers’ championship fight regains momentum. Plus, what to do about Monaco

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Welcome back to Prime Tire, where we forgot to mention last time that I’m still here. It’s me. I’m Patrick, your Tuesday Prime Tire host. So sorry to disappoint! You’re stuck with me in here until you close your inbox.

Formula One’s “crown jewel” tried some new things at the weekend and ended up looking a lot like the old thing. Madeline Coleman, fresh off her second trip to Monaco, will be along shortly. Let’s dive in.

Monaco: Still Broken

Why Monaco 2025 was still a (frustrating) dud

We’ve all seen Monaco races that were a bit of a snooze. This year, Formula One introduced a mandatory two-stop rule to try to spice things up. The result? More of a failed nap where you wake up grumpy. Lando Norris came away the winner, but most everyone else seemed disappointed and frustrated by the whole afternoon.

Here’s why the changes didn’t work, according to the drivers:

Strategy was the new overtaking (and not in a good way)

The two-stop rule invited more gamesmanship. Teams slowed down deliberately to help their other driver maintain their points position, such as Alex Albon creating space for Williams teammate Carlos Sainz or Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson doing the same for Isack Hadjar. I didn’t know trains could fit in Monaco, but:

Totally legal and totally frustrating, even for the drivers involved. As Sainz put it: “You are ultimately manipulating the race and manipulating the outcome.”

“It’s become more of a trend the last few years,” Sainz said. “The two stops, if anything, helped to maybe spice up around the pit windows. But it made us have to do the slow driving twice, which is not a very good look for a sport.”

Drivers hit their limit

After putting up with the train for lap after lap, George Russell straight-up passed Albon illegally and shrugged it off like he missed a brunch reservation. “I just said, ‘Screw it, I want to enjoy Monaco — I want to enjoy driving this track (at) full gas,’” he said. One of our readers said this wasn’t a great look, but also — can you blame Russell? Even Sainz admitted he almost did the same thing.

Still no racing up front

The top three finished where they started. Yes, it’s Monaco. Yes, overtaking there is hard. But if even radical rule changes can’t shake things up at the front, I’m not sure what else can be done. Monaco isn’t going anywhere — its contract runs through 2031. As Madeline said in the mailbag:

One of the ways a track falls off the calendar is due to finances, so, as another reader noted, I can’t see Monaco dropping off unless the financial impact of F1’s presence starts trending downwards. Monaco and F1 are practically synonymous after 75 years. It’s hard to imagine not having the Principality as part of the world championship.

Driver Reactions | Mailbag

Monaco: Still throws a good party

Miami and Las Vegas are attracting more and more attention, especially from American sponsors and celebrities. Full stop. But, as Luke Smith reported this weekend, Monaco remains the gold standard for luxury and legacy.

This year, Red Bull turned a barge into a floating VIP lounge, as execs snuck past security for a glimpse. McLaren revealed a livery on a $50million yacht. And then there’s Louis Vuitton, whose hand-built trophy trunks now get their own pre-race spotlight, wheeled out with white gloves on, like sacred artefacts.

Monaco might be slipping as the “crown jewel” in terms of racing, but for brands, CEOs and high-rollers? It’s still where deals get toasted and memories get made. No other grand prix offers that undeniable sense that if you’re really someone in F1, you’re there.

Anecdotally, I learned through the grapevine of three friends who want to get tickets to Monaco next year. (I’m trying to convince them to go to Spa instead.) It’s still the draw — let Luke tell you why.

Now let’s throw it to Madeline in the paddock.

Inside the Paddock with Madeline Coleman

Texting during the race?

Yes, you read that right — two team principals texted each other during the Monaco Grand Prix: Williams’ James Vowles and Mercedes’ Toto Wolff. And it was Vowles who texted first, with an apology.

A rule change was implemented before Sunday’s race, mandating that drivers complete a minimum of two pit stops. The aim was to improve the racing spectacle, and while there was some strategic variance, questionable tactics unfolded on track. It started with the Racing Bulls, as Liam Lawson began slowing down to create a gap, allowing Isack Hadjar to effectively gain a free pit stop.

Williams eventually followed suit, with Carlos Sainz creating the gap for Alex Albon, and they eventually swapped positions so Albon could do the same for the Spaniard. The team that got hurt from the slowing down tactics was Mercedes. As Racing Bulls and Williams deployed team tactics and created those gaps, Mercedes found itself stuck: lapped by the front of the pack and without taking any of its pit stops past the halfway mark of the grand prix.

As the race unfolded, Vowles texted Wolff, “I’m sorry. We had no choice, given what happened ahead.” Wolff replied, “We know.”

The two used to work side by side at the Silver Arrows before Vowles left to take the team-boss position at Williams in 2023. Wolff said after the race, “James is one of my guys, and I don’t want to sound patronizing because he’s making a career as a team principal, and he’s doing really well. He had to do it. You know, it’s two cars in the points, and I think that what started was these RBs that backed us back off, and that’s what he had to do.”

The Williams and Racing Bulls drivers all ended up with points by the end of the race, but Wolff had to watch Russell finish 11th and Kimi Antonelli 18th.

Norris reclaimed momentum in Monaco (David Davies/PA Images/Alamy Images/Sipa USA)

Title Race 🔥s Up

Lando gets his groove (and title charge) back

I suppose we should talk about the guy who actually won the race. (Don’t you hate it when you receive an award and everyone talks about the guys arguing in the punch-bowl line instead?)

As we’ve talked about, the real winning moment at Monaco still comes on Saturday during qualifying. That’s 90 per cent of the job, and Norris got it done at the last second.

The other 10 per cent came on Sunday. After surviving an early heart-stopping lock-up at Turn 1, Norris showed the kind of ice-cool composure he’s been seeking as he matures into a contender. Perfect pit timing kept Charles Leclerc behind all day, and Max Verstappen gambled on a red flag that never came. When Verstappen pitted late, Norris sealed the deal with the fastest lap of the race.

McLaren boss Andrea Stella summed it up perfectly, saying Norris handled the pressure with “cold blood”.

But it wasn’t just about the race win — it was about Norris rediscovering his mojo. Luke wrote on that yesterday.

🔍 Championship Check-In

Norris has trimmed teammate Oscar Piastri’s lead to just three points. Verstappen and Ferrari aren’t far behind, making this championship battle pretty compelling already. Buckle up. Don’t worry about the team standings — McLaren leads by 172 points … Full standings here.

Outside the points

Monaco’s date shift to the first weekend of June starting next year means it will no longer share the Memorial Day spotlight with the Indy 500 and Coca-Cola 600 over in the United States, breaking up one of racing’s most beloved tripleheaders. We convened a roundtable of our motorsports writers to mourn and discuss. Read more 🔗

The car that took Michael Schumacher to victory in the 2001 Monaco Grand Prix sold this weekend for over $18million, making it the most expensive Schumacher-driven F1 machine ever. Read more 🔗

Finally, I want to give a shout-out to my colleague Jeff Gluck, who did outstanding work covering the Indy 500 all week. Catch up with all of his coverage here.

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(Top photo: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images)

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