Ferrari arrives at the Monaco Formula 1 GP as the main candidate to achieve good results over the weekend, at least in the opinion of McLaren members. Both Lando Norris and the team principal, Andrea Stella, believe that the characteristics of the circuit favor the SF-26, especially in the fight for pole position.
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This assessment gains weight at a time when Mercedes dominates the season. George Russell won the championship opener in Australia, while Kimi Antonelli triumphed in China, Japan, Miami, and Canada, consolidating a comfortable lead in the championship.
Even in this scenario, Norris believes that the narrow and tight streets of the Principality can change the order of forces seen in recent stages. The McLaren driver highlighted Ferrari’s performance in low-speed corners as an important differential for the next weekend: “Monaco is a very different track. I’m excited to see how we will be in Barcelona, but honestly, I think Ferrari will take pole in Monaco. Their performance at low speed is much better than any other team,” he said.
The Briton also recalled his good performance on the circuit last season and highlighted that the layout usually provides special races. Still, he acknowledged that some known limitations of McLaren prevent more optimistic predictions for the team.
“I’m looking forward to Monaco because it’s Monaco. I had success there last year, it was one of my best and most exciting weekends. But in the areas where we know we have difficulties, that doesn’t give me confidence to say we will be amazing, although you never know,” he added.
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Stella agreed with his driver’s analysis. The manager highlighted that Ferrari showed important strengths in Canada, especially in the first sector of the circuit, an area marked by slow corners and curbs, characteristics that, according to him, are usually rewarded in Monaco.
Furthermore, Stella noted that one of the weaknesses recently shown by Ferrari, the loss of performance on straights, has reduced impact on the Monaco layout: “Ferrari has a competitive chassis in corners and normally these characteristics are valued on a track like Monaco. We saw in Canada that they lost time on the straights, but in Monaco there is practically no such factor. That’s why I think Lando is right to say that Ferrari is probably the favorite for pole,” he said.
Even so, the McLaren chief believes his team can be in the fight. Stella recalled that Monaco also has medium and high-speed sections, like Casino, Tabac, and the Piscine sequence, which can keep McLaren competitive: “I definitely see Ferrari as the favorite, but McLaren can be competitive and maybe we can repeat the result we achieved there last year,” he concluded.
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