Monza faces backlash over its new curbs as it strives to maintain its iconic status on the F1 calendar, a change unpopular with many drivers.
Here is a controversy that will not look good, as Monza must secure its place permanently on the F1 calendar.
This year, the circuit has been resurfaced. However, the curbs have also been changed: and this is not at all to the liking of the drivers.
Criticism is focused around the legendary Ascari chicane. The ‘high’ curbs have been flattened… While the modification might seem beneficial for safety, it nevertheless removes, according to the drivers, some character from the chicane. In essence, Monza would be losing its history, its challenge, its uniqueness.
Leading the skeptics: Daniel Ricciardo. The one who won here at Monza with McLaren F1, is clearly not impressed… that’s an understatement!
“They’ve changed the curbs. I walked the circuit. I can’t say I’m impressed because I think some elements have somewhat diminished the character of the circuit.”
“Obviously, many of you have followed F1 longer than me and I might just be saying this as a driver… because we drive the F1 cars, so maybe it makes sense to us, I don’t know if it makes sense from the outside.”
“But curbs and things like that… they make a circuit unique, and when you put flat curbs in… Previously, at turn 5, you’d go over the curb and then there was like a thin strip of concrete and then gravel. In the past, we always tried to run the wheels on this little bit of concrete and use the whole track, but not too much.”
“It’s also quite bumpy. I think it was a bit of an ‘old-school’ element, and that’s gone. We haven’t driven yet, but the surface is superb. The asphalt looks great, but I’m a bit disappointed with the curbs.”
However, Daniel Ricciardo admits that the spectacle during the race might be improved thanks to these changes. The view is therefore more nuanced than it appears.
“It’s very flat now, so ultimately… because we can use so much more of the curb probably, it’ll be wider and easier to be flat out in turns 9 and 10.”
“I don’t want to be too negative – maybe this means we can follow other cars more closely because it’s easier like that. I think they still underestimate the curbs and what they do to a circuit, how they change the feel, the character, the approach.”
“We’ll see. Obviously, I’m going to enjoy driving here, but I feel like the circuit has lost a bit of its ‘old-school’ edge.”
“We’re going to a lot of modern circuits now, which are fun and great, but if we want to keep the old-school circuits, then let’s keep them old-school – that’s kind of what concerns me.”
The problem for Daniel Ricciardo is also that the drivers were not consulted by the circuit before the modification…
“We don’t need our opinion to prevail, but at least… let us give our input. Maybe we’ll save them some money. They don’t need to change the curbs.”
“Maybe we have a more cost-effective solution. Sometimes, we’re still a bit in the dark. At the end of the day, it’s us who are driving. OK, again, maybe we’re not making the final decision, but at least listen to us and let us try to give the car’s perspective.”
Daniel Ricciardo’s teammate, Yuki Tsunoda, confirms that the circuit has lost some of its soul.
“It feels like the circuit has lost a bit of Monza’s character, which could be positive or negative.”
“The first part of a curb can be used aggressively, but some cars can’t do it because they don’t have as much aerodynamic downforce as other cars and have to compromise… but I don’t know how it will be on this circuit, but we’ll see.”
At Williams F1, Alexander Albon shares Yuki Tsunoda’s view…
“I feel like the layout has lost some of its character. Some of the curbs that have been installed are a bit more generic and I think that generally, Monza had a specific track style.”
“It was always bumpy, but that wasn’t a bad thing and the curbs were quite unique. I think there will be a lot of exploration in free practice, to see if you can use them or not and to what extent you can use them will be a big question mark, but let’s see.”
Hamilton and Leclerc are waiting to see
Among all the drivers, Lewis Hamilton is one of the most cautious. The Briton is waiting to drive on the track before giving a definitive opinion. But there is already some nostalgia…
“I don’t want to judge before I’ve driven, maybe it will be the best thing and the biggest changes of all time, so I don’t want to shoot myself in the foot with that.”
“In the end, we liked it before, this circuit. For years, it’s been very bumpy in many places and that has been a big part of the character of this circuit, the curbs also have been about the same for over 20 years, so it’s a big, big change, but in the end it’s the same circuit.”
“We won’t know until free practice, but it seems that the track will be much friendlier and a bit faster.”
Like his future teammate, Charles Leclerc is also cautious: one must not offend the promoters of Monza, of course…
“Yes, I agree. It’s hard to judge at this moment. The tarmac, we’ve reached a point where it needs to be renewed. So, it’s not as if we had the choice to keep the same tarmac for years and years. Because at some point, there are too many bumps. And especially with our Formula 1, they run so low… the tracks need to be renewed. On that note, all is well. As for the curbs, it’s true that some circuits have historic curbs. And even if they renew them, I believe it was done in Canada and they kept exactly the same shape, which is good. But I haven’t tried the new curbs yet. Maybe they are even better than the old ones. But that, I can tell you each time.”
- You may also like>The F1 safety car crashes during reconnaissance at Monza
- Also make sure you follow us on social media>Facebook and>Twitter
F1 Drivers Question Monza’s Identity Shift F1 Drivers Question Monza’s Identity Shift. f1 2024 italian F1 Drivers Question Monza’s Identity Shift
