When the two-stop mandate for the 2025 Monaco Grand Prix was announced a few months ago, there was hope for a more exciting race. The historic race has contained very few overtakes in the last few years, largely attributed to the increase in car size.
There was quite a lot of speculation about how teams could approach their pit stops throughout the race. Strategy was going to be ever so important, and it was hoped that the new rule would result in drivers accordingly overcutting or undercutting those around them.
However, this year’s Monaco Grand Prix was the same as always: flat-out boring. The drivers found themselves in a parade rather than a race. Max Verstappen’s commentary may have been the most exciting part of the race, with the Dutch driver sarcastically making clear his displeasure for the mandatory two stops.
Formula 1 has another task on their hands for 2026
Teams generally want to save their pit stops for a potential safety car or red flag, so it ended up turning into a true team game. One driver would hold up the pack behind and create a gap of around 20 seconds, enough for the teammate to box and still emerge in front.
Drivers would take turns doing it, which ended up being a workaround for the intended effect of the two mandated stops.
With the Grand Prix’s contract recently extended until 2031, Formula 1 and the FIA must think of other ways to create an actual race rather than a parade. After this past weekend’s Grand Prix, Verstappen and George Russell jokingly suggested adding measures to make the surface more slippery, with the Dutch driver alluding to a Mario Kart-style change.
The hope is that the next era of regulations will yield slightly smaller cars, thus promoting more overtaking at a number of different circuits, including Monaco. What this historic Grand Prix will give fans and drivers in 2026 is still a mystery, and one more year must pass before it becomes clear.