The president of the Automobile Club of Monaco (ACM), Michel Boeri, returned in the columns of the Monaco Matin to announce the extension of the Grand Prix in the Principality for three more years.
After a few months of uncertainty, but also disagreements between the FOM and the ACM over the rights to this Grand Prix, it was finally accepted into the official 2023 F1 calendar.
« The investigation is complete. It is signed under the conditions that we have accepted, knowing that we are preserving the majority of our prerogatives and that certain things that have been said, such as future control of spectators on balconies and terraces, are not materially feasible, » Boeri explains.
« It must be clear, and everyone must stop worrying. On the other hand, there are a few details that cannot be changed, such as the wild sales of t-shirts. But these are minor issues in comparison to what we risked.
« It is true that it was not easy, and contrary to what was written, we did not come out of there ‘proud.’ We leave there relieved and happy to have completed the task.
When asked if the FOM now has a strong negotiating position, given the popularity of F1, Boeri does not deny that the ACM was under pressure. Prince Albert would have even stepped in to save the race.
« The Prince approached certain individuals to remind them that the dialogue would not be halted and that we would not reach a point of conflict and blockage. This allowed us to quickly agree on an attractive price with some concessions, but we will have to see how they are respected and carried out on the ground.
« When it became clear that the Grand Prix was crucial in Monaco, the game of poker we were playing became skewed. It could have been negotiated better or worse, but the goal was met despite the fact that we were not the only ones in the competition. France has been ousted, Germany theoretically no longer has a Grand Prix, Italy will have to make an effort, and Belgium is on borrowed time.
« We did our best, perhaps not brilliantly, but we’re here to talk about it, which isn’t bad. Let us not forget that five or six Grand Prix opportunities have yet to be awarded and will only be available at a level of financial commitment that we can no longer support.
Boeri assumes the three-year duration, which may seem short for such a prestigious Grand Prix. And admits that by wanting to take certain things under their wing, the FOM risks breaking their teeth.
« The three years were not imposed on us; I chose them. Many of the clauses imposed on us today must be reconsidered because they are impractical. So I preferred to imagine that in three years, after experiencing the joys and difficulties of organizing in Monaco, these Formula One gentlemen would perhaps return to feelings of flexibility, which is desirable for them as well as for us, because no one wants to be embroiled in the scandal of a failed organization.
You can feel the venom rising…
« It is a figment of the imagination to believe that every point of the contract must be carried out in Monaco. Given how difficult these clauses are, we believe they would be delighted to change the contract. Each organizer is forced to sign a standard contract. The contracts are classified, but we did not fare badly. We were not the most mistreated. « The grid prices differ by a factor of one to four. And we are not the most lucrative Grand Prix. However, the next round of negotiations will begin without me. Time has flown by, and I am still here because I enjoyed it. We had some autonomy, the freedom to experiment, and the ability to invent and modify things. We are now being watched. “We tire when we are forced.” There was a time when we were dealing with Europeans and knew how far we could go in negotiations when it came to matters of tradition. There was a way of thinking about Grands Prix that originated in Europe. That was the case during Ecclestone’s tenure. We fought, but we won. Let’s not get into Balestre, but we made it. Mosley made it easier. And we had no problems with Todt. The question on the same affective and historical relationship is no longer possible today. There is a society that exists to make money. It’s not outrageous, but the more money they have, the better off they are. If a Grand Prix offers five times what we can, it usually wins.
The ACM president specifically states that the FOM will take over TV production, even though an associated director from Monaco will always be present. An unavoidable evil…
« There are rules, sensitivity, and intelligence in life. Everyone is a member of a regiment, so why would we abandon them? Especially when the shared goal is success. True, this has not always been the case with race directors, but it is logical that we are involved at home due to our knowledge of the terrain. We are operational, but there are commercial and legal issues that we are not used to dealing with. We’re playing sports.

While Formula One heads to Monza this weekend for the Italian Grand Prix, Mercedes F1 may have a difficult weekend because its W13 is not comfortable on circuits that require a lot of top speed.
It’s possible that the German team is less efficient than it was in Zandvoort last week, but Toto Wolff, in a lighthearted tone, has clearly found the ideal solution to ensure that this is not the case.
“We’re thinking about removing the rear wings to make ourselves less vulnerable in a straight line,” the Austrian leader joked.
« We have a car with far too much aerodynamic drag, and we won’t need downforce at this track. That is something we hope to change quickly in light of next year, but we are learning the hard way for the time being.
« And I believe it will penalize us on some of the remaining circuits this year, particularly in qualifying. It’s better in the race because, as we saw at Spa, there aren’t any significant differences in a straight line.
Mercedes F1 is less efficient than at Zandvoort but more efficient than at Spa.
Andrew Shovlin, director of track engineering, is a little less pessimistic than his boss.
« We’ll be able to use smaller fins there, we’ll have less downforce, and we’re hopeful that some of the specific issues we had at Spa on the bumps won’t affect us. »
« We can move the car to a better operating window. However, the Red Bull looks very efficient, it’s quick on the straights and it’s quick on the corners and those issues seem more important to us when we go on low downforce tracks. »
« It’s difficult to say where we’ll be: probably not as strong as we were at Zandvoort, but hopefully not as difficult as at Spa. »
By the end of the season, several circuits should be suitable for the W13.
Despite the fact that Monza is a more difficult circuit, Mercedes believes there will be other circuits where they can extract more potential from their car before the season ends.
“There are always a number of factors at work,” Shovlin continues.
“One of them is that we just developed the car, trying to solve a few of the issues we had at the start of the season, and we got faster and faster over time.”
« However, you saw at Spa that we really struggled particularly on a single lap and we have identified some areas of development that make it difficult to get it working in its optimum state on those tracks. We had to raise the car slightly at Spa, and we struggled with it over some bumps, which cost us performance.
« It was easier to put the car in the right window in Zandvoort. It drove well and did not bounce over bumps. It gave the drivers confidence, and they were able to push it, so we probably had a good weekend. most competitive end of the year in terms of qualifying and race »
« It was very encouraging, and we will have more good circuits in the future. »

The announcement was made at the end of August, but the International Automobile Federation (FIA) confirmed it on Tuesday, September 20: the French Grand Prix will not be part of the Formula One world championship in 2023. Despite the threat, the Monaco Grand Prix is still held, as is the Belgian race, Spa-Francorchamps, which was also under threat.
The Grand Prix de France, which had been held on the Castellet circuit in the Var in recent years, returned to the calendar in 2018 after a 10-year absence. The inclusion of Monaco in the world championship since its inception in 1950 has been called into question by Liberty Media, the new owners of the commercial rights. With the Automobile Club de Monaco, a new agreement covering three editions until 2025 has been reached.
Also see: Formula One: No Grand Prix in France in 2023.
The 2023 season, which begins on March 5 in Bahrain and concludes on November 26 in Abu Dhabi, will feature a record 24 races. A race will be held in Las Vegas for the first time. In addition to the Grands Prix in Miami (May 7) and Austin (November 18), three Grands Prix will be held in the United States. We also note the return of an appointment in Qatar after a year’s absence.
Also read: Max Verstappen: “It would be boring in F1 if all the drivers were the same.”
“The presence of 24 races on the Formula One World Championship calendar once again demonstrates the growth and attractiveness of this sport on a global scale,” said FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem in a press release.
The championship was supposed to have 23 events in 2022, but the competition promoter canceled the Sochi Grand Prix in February due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Formula 1 is experiencing unprecedented demand to host races, and it is critical that we find the right (geographical) balance for this sport in general,” said Stefano Domenicali, CEO of Liberty Media.
The schedule for the 2023 season
Bahrain Grand Prix is scheduled for March 5th.
March 19 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia
April 22 Grand Prix of Australia
The Chinese Grand Prix takes place on April 16th.
April 30 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan
The Miami Grand Prix takes place on May 7th.
May 21st Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna
May 28 Grand Prix de Monaco
June 4 Grand Prix de Espana
The Canadian Grand Prix takes place on June 18th.
The 2nd of July Grand Prix of Austria
The 9th of July Grand Prix of Great Britain
July 23 Grand Prix of Hungary
July 30 Grand Prix de Belgique
The 27th of August Grand Prix of the Netherlands
The Italian Grand Prix (Monza) is on September 3rd, and the Singapore Grand Prix is on September 17th.
The 24th of September Grand Prix of Japan
The Qatar Grand Prix takes place on October 8th.
Grand Prix of the United States, October 22
The 29th of October Grand Prix de Mexico
Brazilian Grand Prix on November 5th
The 18th of November Grand Prix de Las Vegas (USA) November 26 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

The World According to AFP

Ferrari strategist Inaki Rueda has weighed in on the Scuderia’s Monza decisions. The tactics manager explains why the team took a slower bet on paper, and how they were hoping for a scenario that nearly occurred.
“We had the opportunity to refuel under the virtual safety car on lap 11,” explains Rueda. “Our pre-race numbers indicated that it would be a one-stop race with soft and medium tyres.”
« The two-stop race took ten seconds longer. A virtual safety car pit stop is nine seconds faster than a normal pit stop. »
« We had a window of opportunity where we said we could go to a two-stop race with a shorter pit stop under a virtual safety car, or we could stay on a traditional stop.
»
« After the VSC, we knew on paper that Charles would finish four or five seconds behind Verstappen, but we persevered, we kept trying to execute the two saves, and we were hoping for a VSC or safety car period near the end of the race that we could take advantage of.
»
A safety car procedure that is too slow
Indeed, the safety car arrived late in the race and could have aided Ferrari, but the race was halted due to a slow procedure. Rueda regrets that the exit from the Safety Car was not better managed so that the race could be restarted.
« A safety car usually lasts three to four laps, so we expected two to three laps of racing after the safety car period. The safety car emerged from the pits and recovered [George] Russell, who was driving the third car. »
« The normal procedure is that this car is left by a green light on top of the safety car and this car goes around the track following a reference lap of the safety car, a reference lap that the FIA gives so that we drive slowly and safely so as not to endanger the teams that recover the car that has a problem.
»
« The safety car slowed Russell for five minutes and, more importantly, three laps behind them. It took up too many of the race’s remaining laps, and by the time the safety car let the peloton through to reorganize, we didn’t have enough laps to finish. »

Nyck De Vries and Guanyu Zhou nearly collided at the end of the race in Monza, earning the Dutchman a stewards’ summons. He only received a reprimand after suffering from delicate brakes and responding to an order from his team, to which Xevi Pujolar, Alfa Romeo F1’s director of engineering, responded.
« It was strange because De Vries suddenly slowed down in a way that Zhou didn’t expect, » Pujolar explained. « And, in fact, he could have hit him from behind if he hadn’t been able to avoid it. It wasn’t ideal on that one.
« In this situation, a driver should not drive like that because it could be dangerous. The stewards then decided it was fine, and no action was taken other than what happened, so we take note of this. But Zhou was taken aback by this action.
Zhou tried and failed several times to get rid of the Dutchman’s Williams. Pujolar explained how difficult this was for the Chinese driver, but he was still pleased to bring the point back from tenth place.
« Sure, we had a chance. We had a good chance on a few laps, I believe. He was drafted by [Pierre] Gasly, and then Max [Verstappen] came along and passed us, so we must have lost some time at that point.
« Overall, I thought it was a good battle, but I would have preferred to stay in front because I believe we had a bit more pace except on the straight, where we all know they are. are extremely quick. I’m pleased for the team, and I believe everyone deserves it, both here and at the factory.
Zhou reveals that De Vries fought hard for his position, and that despite his desire to take him, he preferred to land the blow: « He was moving quite late in the braking zone, so it was quite difficult for me to dive. However, you must comprehend it.
« I was very focused on the race because I knew I couldn’t take any chances because I knew how badly he wanted the points and how badly I wanted the points for the team. As a result, it was difficult until the end, but I’m glad we finished where we did.

Lando Norris started third but finished seventh in Italy, and the McLaren driver predicted a top-five finish at Monza.

Norris began the race in third place, but a slow start dropped him to sixth. The Briton then had a long first stint on the medium tyre before pitting from P5, but a lengthy pit stop dropped him behind Lewis Hamilton, before another stop under the Safety Car dropped Norris to P7.

MONDAY MORNING DEBRIEF: Verstappen’s three key factors in winning the Italian Grand Prix

“There were some mistakes with the launch settings, things that I couldn’t change or adapt, so I was dealing with a car that wasn’t made to do a launch basically,” Norris said of his slow start.

“That meant I had to go into anti-stall two or three times, which cost me a lot of time and positions and probably cost me fifth place today.” So, I’m a little disappointed, no, quite disappointed, because I felt like I did a good job and drove well, but we just made too many mistakes.”

Norris was disappointed after his McLaren’s launch settings issue cost him fifth place.

Norris sounded irritated on the radio as he requested radio silence near the end of the Grand Prix. However, the McLaren driver insisted that he was “relaxed” and aiming for a better result.

Verstappen wins his first Italian Grand Prix behind the Safety Car, while Leclerc is forced to settle for P2.

“I mean, I was relaxed,” Norris explained. “I perform better when I am relaxed and chilled.” Of course, all you want is to be able to be in your zone, concentrate, and do your thing. So, we would have finished P6 if there hadn’t been a Safety Car, and then we boxed, which was possibly another mistake.

“It’s just that I’m really good at driving, so little things like updates on gaps are unnecessary when there are five laps to do.” I was at ease, and I felt like I was doing a good job; I just don’t like it when people talk to me.”

Norris was pleased that he was able to make it past Fernando Alonso on track

“I think the fact that I got past Fernando [Alonso], he got me on the restart; I got back passed him on just pure pace,” Norris said of the race on Sunday. Especially after Friday – they appeared to be stronger than us on Friday, but today we definitely appeared to be stronger than [Alpine].

“Some positives: we tried a few new things this weekend, and some of them seem to have worked out.” So, hopefully, there are things to look forward to if we can improve on that for the rest of the season.”

McLaren is only 18 points behind Alpine, who did not score in Italy, after picking up six points from Monza.

Ferrari may not have won the Italian Grand Prix, but Team Principal Mattia Binotto expressed his delight at the Scuderia’s improved performance at Monza.

Charles Leclerc won the pole position for the first time since the French GP, while Carlos Sainz finished 18th due to an engine penalty. While Leclerc battled for second place behind Max Verstappen, teammate Sainz produced a brilliant drive to move up to fourth place.

After the race, Binotto expressed his delight at the Ferrari’s improved performance in Italy after a difficult few races, but lamented the late Safety Car, which was caused by Daniel Ricciardo’s DNF and ended Sainz’s chances of passing George Russell for the final podium spot.

MONDAY MORNING DEBRIEF: Verstappen’s three key factors in winning the Italian Grand Prix

“If we look at the last three races, we have not been great enough,” Binotto said. “We have not been great in pace, and we have not been great in race pace and degradation, but here in Monza, I think we made a step ahead, and it’s clear if you look at the other cars behind us, we made a step ahead in qualifying.”

“We had a great qualifying with our two drivers, and today I think in the race pace, a little more degradation to Max, but still a good performance compared to the other cars.” Carlos ran a fantastic race today, and he has been the one starting from the back and making the most of the progress. He drove extremely well. He was quick at the end on the soft tyres.”

Binotto was pleased with Ferrari’s progress, particularly in qualifying.

“I think with the Safety Car possibly ending early, he could even have attacked George Russell because he was on new soft tyres and finished on the podium,” he continued, “so, overall, I think if your car gives you the opportunity starting from 18th and potentially finishing third, it’s still a good performance.”

Binotto also defended the team’s decision to pit Leclerc from the lead during the Virtual Safety Car period, which was caused by Sebastian Vettel’s retirement, claiming that they needed to try something different if they were to compete with Verstappen.

Sainz laments the late Safety Car as he misses P18 to podium recovery at Monza.

“I think Max was simply faster today,” Binotto said, “but when we were leading the race, we saw that we had a bit more tyre degradation to Max, and our strategy at the time was one-stop, so we would’ve stayed out without the Virtual Safety Car.”

“But then the Virtual Safety Car appeared, and we believed, and I believe it was the right decision, and we simply decided to go on a different strategy of two stops.”

Binotto was grateful for the tifosi’s help over the weekend.

“We simply weren’t on the same strategy as Max because we believe he would have been faster, so we came in. Max and Red Bull were also ready for the pit stop, so they probably would have decided opposite to Charles. We came in, they stayed out. We were on a two-stop strategy, they were on one, and then Max was simply faster.”

: 6 Italian Grand Prix Winners and Losers – Who shone at Monza?

“I think I need a glass of red wine because it’s a very busy weekend. A lot of pressure,” Binotto said of the weekend. “But still our Tifosi was there. I think it’s great to have their support and to see them really cheering us or cheering each time that Carlos was overtaking, it’s still a good emotion.”

Ferrari trails Red Bull by 139 points in the constructors’ championship, but maintains their lead over Mercedes after outscoring the Silver Arrows by five points in Italy.