Haas will celebrate its tenth F1 anniversary with a special event at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. This is the first year the team will be present at the event, and they will be the only F1 team with an interactive hub this year. Although the full details about the drivers and cars set to be at the event, the team’s current drivers Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman will participate in the famous hillclimb. Neither Romain Grosjean nor Kevin Magnussen, the team’s longest-standing driver pairing, is currently involved with Formula One, but it’s unknown whether they will also attend. The team’s 2023 and 2024 cars will be featured during the weekend. Their first car, the VF-16, and their current car will both be on display. The American-owned team made its debut in 2016, going on to score a best finish of P4 at the 2023 Miami Grand Prix. They are currently ranked P6 in the World Constructors’ Championship.
Formula One announced a new partnership with Disney that will see Disney characters feature in F1 content and merchandise. While there weren’t many details about the new deal, Disney’s consumer products president, Tasia Filippatos, said the partnership “offers a unique opportunity to bring two powerhouse entertainment properties together to create products that fans will love.” Disney is the latest merchandise-focused partnership the sport has joined in recent years, striking similar deals with companies like Hot Wheels and LEGO.
Netflix’s hit docuseries, Drive to Survive, won an award at the Sports Emmy Awards for the second time. Nominated for “Outstanding Documentary Series – Serialized”, the show was up against Full Court Press on ESPN+, Hard Knocks on HBO, The Rise of a Legend on Apple TV+, and The Money Game on Prime Video. This is not the first time the series has been nominated for the award, having been nominated every year since 2021 and winning the category in 2022. Airing its seventh season earlier this year, the series gives fans a glimpse into life in Formula One both on and off the track. While the series has, at times, been criticized for its overly dramatic storylines, the show continues to be highly popular and highly rated. The show has also won other awards in previous years, mostly for sound mixing.
A private screening was arranged to give the F1 drivers and senior figures a chance to watch the upcoming F1 movie ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix. All of the drivers were in attendance, except for Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll, both of whom skipped the event for personal reasons. The overall reception from the drivers was positive, with most feeling it would help to draw people to the sport. Others, although positive, pointed out some of the Hollywood-style inaccuracies and drama added to make the film more entertaining. The film is set to release globally next month.
Charles Leclerc led the opening free practice session in Monaco on Friday in front of his home crowd. It was not smooth sailing for the Monegasque, slamming into the back of Lance Stroll at the hairpin early in the session. The Canadian hadn’t heard his race engineer’s warnings about the incoming Leclerc over the team radio. Leclerc was able to continue after the red flag, but Stroll’s suspension was too damaged to rejoin practice, and he would earn a one-place grid drop for the race. Traffic was an issue in the busy session, with P2 finisher Max Verstappen also complaining about slow-moving cars. Lando Norris, who had been fastest at the halfway point of the session, found himself in P3 ahead of Alex Albon and Oscar Piastri.
The second practice session on Friday was also topped by Charles Leclerc. There was less drama for the Ferrari driver this time around, but that’s not to say the session didn’t have its issues. Isack Hadjar was the first driver to trigger the red flag early in the session, clipping the barrier at the Nouvelle Chicane and losing the rear tyre. He limped back to the pit lane while the marshals cleared debris. Oscar Piastri set the pace when the session resumed, but then drove straight into the barrier at turn one. The race was red-flagged for debris. Oliver Bearman earned himself a ten-place grid penalty for overtaking Carlos Sainz under the red flag. Piastri was able to return to the pits for a new front wing, recovering to finish P2 in the session ahead of Lewis Hamilton and teammate Lando Norris. Liam Lawson and Hadjar were the only other drivers to finish within 0.5s of the pace set by the leading Ferrari.
Charles Leclerc completed his domination of the Monaco free practice sessions with another fastest lap in the final session on Saturday morning. It was a slow start to the session, with the circuit lacking grip. Leclerc set the time to beat during qualifying simulations in the final 15 minutes of the session. Teammate Lewis Hamilton would inadvertently prevent anyone from beating the team when he hit the barrier in Massenet, bringing out the session’s only red flag. Max Verstappen was second fastest in the session ahead of the two McLarens, with Hamilton rounding out the top five.
Lando Norris managed to dethrone Charles Leclerc from his dominant weekend, beating him to pole position. Traffic was heavy in Q1 around the congested narrow streets of the Principality. Max Verstappen had a close call with Lewis Hamilton at Massenet. The session ended prematurely when Kimi Antonelli clipped the barrier at the Nouvelle Chicane on his final lap, bringing out the red flags. Antonelli advanced to Q2, but his Mercedes was too damaged to do any running. The team would get more work when George Russell’s car came to a halt with a mechanical issue early in Q2, ensuring both Mercedes cars would start well down the grid. The battle for pole position came down to the wire in Q3. Leclerc set the pace but was beaten by Norris on the final lap. Oscar Piastri was not fast enough to make it a McLaren front-row lockout, having to settle for P3 alongside Lewis Hamilton.
As is so often the case around Monaco, the race was won by Lando Norris from pole position, but that only tells part of the story. The two front-row drivers were side-by-side into the first corner, but Charles Leclerc backed out of the move when Norris locked up. There was an early virtual safety car for a clash between Gabriel Bortoleto and Kimi Antonelli on the opening lap, allowing some drivers to make their first of two required pit stops. Surprisingly, none of the top cars took the opportunity. There was another incident when Pierre Gasly slammed into the back of Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull out of the tunnel. When the green flag pit stops began, it was apparent that the undercut was not very powerful around this circuit. With more pit stops now required, some teams began to use their cars to slow the field, creating cheap pit stops for their teammates. One team was Williams, which created controversy. George Russell cut the chicane to overtake the slow-driving Alex Albon, but the stewards punished the Brit heavily with a drive-through penalty. In the closing laps, Max Verstappen led the way, waiting to make his final pit stop until the final lap. Leclerc applied some pressure to Norris in the closing laps, but the McLaren driver zoomed ahead after Verstappen dove into the pit lane. Click here to read our full summary of the Monaco Grand Prix.
One more race remains in the second triple-header of the season. Next, teams will head to Spain for the Spanish Grand Prix on June 1 around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
It can be challenging for even the most avid fans to keep up with the fast-paced world of Formula One. The Weekly F1 Recap is a series published each Monday that breaks down the action, both on and off the circuit, into bit-sized pieces. It's perfect for casual and experienced fans alike.
