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Mercedes-Benz to use Green Steel to achieve carbon dioxide neutrality

*Visit www.bhpetrol.com.my for more information.*

Carbon dioxide or CO₂ is one of the gases that cause climate change and while this gas is present naturally, a lot is also generated by modern industries as well as internal combustion engines. To limit, if not stop, climate change, governments in many regions have introduced regulations that will force a reduction in emissions of CO₂.

For the auto industry, various approaches are being taken in all aspects, not just the products but also the manufacturing processes in the factories. Among the approaches being taken by Mercedes-Benz AG is the use of CO₂-free steel in its production vehicles. It is the first car manufacturer to take an equity stake in Swedish start-up H2 Green Steel (H2GS) as a way to make this move.

Prevention and reduction, rather than compensation
Together with its steel suppliers, the company is retooling its supply chain to focus on the prevention and reduction of CO₂ emissions rather than compensation. The partnership with HSGS is another step towards CO₂neutrality, which Mercedes-Benz is pursuing as part of Ambition 2039, its goal to achieve a fully connected and CO₂-neutral vehicle fleet in 2039 – 11 years earlier than the EU legislation requires.

*Vehicle assembly at a Mercedes-Benz factory in Germany*

A Mercedes‑Benz sedan is, for example, made from about 50% steel, which accounts for about 30% of CO₂ emissions in production. With the partnership, Mercedes-Benz is actively and consistently tackling one of the biggest challenges in the automotive industry on the road to CO₂neutrality.

Accelerate change in steel industry
“With an equity stake in H2 Green Steel, Mercedes-Benz is sending an important signal to accelerate change in the steel industry and increase the availability of carbon-free steel. As a first step, we are investing a single-digit million amount. As a preferred partner of the start-up, we will be launching green steel in various vehicle models as early as 2025,” said Markus Schafer, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG; responsible for Daimler Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars COO.

H2GS, founded in 2020, will produce 5 million tons of fossil-free steel by 2030. By doing this, the company will contribute to the decarbonizing of the European steel industry, one of the largest carbon dioxide emitters.

CO₂-free manufacturing technology
By using a new, innovative manufacturing process, the production of steel at the supplier level is CO₂-free. By contrast, steel produced using a traditional blast furnace emits an average of more than 2 tons of CO₂ per ton. In the new process, the supplier uses hydrogen and electricity from 100% renewable energy sources instead of coking coal in steel production.

The hydrogen serves as a reduction gas, which releases and binds the oxygen from the iron ore. Unlike the use of coking coal, this does not produce CO₂, but water. The supplier uses electricity from 100% renewable sources for the energy requirements generated in the manufacturing process.

Sustainable steel supply chain
Mercedes-Benz and all its steel suppliers are working consistently to reduce CO₂emissions in the steel supply chain on the way to producing green steel. In addition, the company is committed to a responsible steel supply, relying on the application of recognized standards and robust certificates. Mercedes-Benz is a member of the Responsible Steel Initiative and is actively involved in the development of a certifiable sustainability standard for the steel industry. The aim is to ensure environmentally friendly and socially acceptable steel production along the entire value chain.

Future Mercedes-Benz supply chain
Mercedes-Benz AG pursues the goal of a CO2-neutral new car fleet along the entire value and supply chain. Suppliers representing more than 85% of Mercedes-Benz’s annual purchasing volume have already signed an Ambition Letter, agreeing to supply the company only with CO2-neutral products in the future. This includes important steel suppliers. At the same time, Mercedes-Benz is working with its partners to gradually increase the proportion of secondary materials in components and materials.

Rolls-Royce re-establishes its Coachbuild department to go beyond Bespoke

‘Coachbuilding’ may sound like an old or outdated term and it is indeed old – as old as the motorcar itself – but it is not outdated as it refers to the art and science of creating bespoke (custom-made) bodywork on a pre-assembled chassis. It was actually how cars were made before Henry Ford introduced mass production and that virtually ended coachbuilding – except at a few manufacturers, among them Rolls-Royce.

More than a century of coachbuilding experience has given Rolls-Royce its unique Bespoke capabilities which have developed in the modern era. This has made it possible for those who buy a Rolls-Royce to personalise virtually every aspect of their cars’ appearance and specification.

Constraints still existed
Although, in theory, a coachbuilt Rolls-Royce could be any shape the customer desired, in practice there were constraints. Rolls-Royce cars were designed on proven technical principles that were, in the minds of the company’s founders, unarguable and inviolable. By insisting on fixed dimensions for the bulkhead behind the radiator, they were able to ensure the bodywork maintained the essential proportions that visually identified it as a ‘true’ Rolls-Royce.

Those proportions remain enshrined in the marque’s design tenets to this day. Examine any contemporary Rolls-Royce and it exhibits the 2:1 ratio of body height to wheel diameter first established with the Silver Ghost in 1907. The body shape is defined by three fluid lines running the length of the car: the ‘waft line’ that gives the car its sense of movement; the ‘waist line’ that lends it purpose and presence; and the silhouette, which expresses its individual character.

Considerable scope
These basic principles allow considerable scope, as evidenced by the highly distinctive forms of Phantom, Ghost, Wraith, Dawn and Cullinan. Patrons and designers therefore enjoy considerable creative freedom in a coachbuilding project, within these fundamental design parameters. It will, after all, bear the Spirit of Ecstasy figurine above the grille – another immutable principle – so must be a genuine Rolls-Royce worthy of the name, and recognisably so.

However, while customers have always been able to personalise their car’s appearance in numerous different ways – beginning with a choice of 44,000 paint colours – their options for altering its overall outline have historically been limited by the underlying structure. For this reason, fully coachbuilt Rolls-Royce cars have been rarities in the modern era and much of the sensation around Sweptail arose precisely because it was such a unique event.

It was made possible by a seismic change in the marque’s manufacturing process, which was first deployed to great effect and global acclaim with the eighth and current generation of the Phantom. This Phantom was the first car to be built on the marque’s proprietary structure – an all-aluminium spaceframe chassis, designed and engineered from the ground up to be scalable for a range of different models.

In essence, it creates four fixed points at each corner of the car. The distance between them can be whatever the designers and engineers want it to be: bulkhead, floor, crossmember and sill panels can all be stretched or shrunk or increased in height as the design requires. The concept has proved brilliantly successful, forming the basis for the Cullinan SUV launched in 2019, and in 2020, the new Ghost.

New possibilities for coachbuilding
This flexibility opens up new possibilities for coachbuilding. By moving away from monocoque construction to something closer to a traditional rolling chassis, Rolls-Royce has reacquired the freedom to construct almost any body shape its customers can imagine, constrained only by fundamental design and engineering requirements.

This means that Rolls-Royce and its customers can now look beyond merely Bespoke and build the car itself, to personal requirements. In this way, it is perfectly aligned with a lifestyle in which the customer’s investments in luxury – property, clothing and jewellery to works of art, yachts or private aircraft – are personal, individual and unique.

Evolutionary and revolutionary
With the Architecture of Luxury, the marque has ushered in a new coachbuilding movement that encompasses both highly sophisticated 21st Century technology and materials, and a tradition extending back more than 100 years. It is both evolutionary and revolutionary.

“The ability to personalise almost every aspect of their motor car is one of the main reasons our patrons come to us. But we know some wish to go further still. In 2017, we stunned the world with our first fully coachbuilt motor car of the modern era – the spectacular Rolls-Royce Sweptail. This was, by definition, an entirely unique commission; but in our minds, it was the start of a journey,” said Torsten Muller-Otvos, CEO of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars

“We have formally re-established our Coachbuild department for those patrons who wish to go beyond the existing restraints, and explore the almost limitless possibilities this opens up for them. We are able to offer our customers the opportunity to create a motor car in which every single element is hand-built to their precise individual requirements, as befits our status as a true luxury house.”

Custom specification for Aston Martin V12 Speedster

Aston Martin has revealed more details of its forthcoming open cockpit V12 Speedster, of which there will only 88 cars available. Customers will be able to choose a custom specification that is certain to underscore the cars’ instant collector’s item status.

Deliveries of the hand-built cars will commence from mid-2021 with the price of the car likely to be US$1 million (about RM4.14 million) or more after a customer customizes it further.

The new car aligns gracefully with a heritage that features not only the exceptional DBR1, but also the CC100 which was unveiled in 2013 as a celebration of Aston Martin’s 100 years of sportscar excellence.

The DBR1
The DBR1 is, to date, the most successful racing machine constructed by Aston Martin, having triumphed in the 1959 at both the 24 hours of Le Mans and the 1,000 kms of Nurburgring, also winning the latter in 1957 and 1958. After its debut in 1956, the DBR1 recorded a further string of famous victories which culminated in Aston Martin taking the World Sportscar Championship in 1959.

Although a car made for competitive racing, the DBR1 was also a precursor for some of the marque’s most well-known heritage ‘DB’ road cars. At the car’s heart from 1958 onwards lay a 2992 cc straight six engine mated to a David Brown 5-speed gearbox. It was capable of powering this 800-kg sportscar to an estimated top speed in excess of 240 km/h.

Produced as a pure racing model – not directly derived from a road car – just five examples of the DBR1 were ever built, one of which was for private use. Such a rich and important history has inspired the brand to create a dedicated optional DBR1 specification for the new V12 Speedster.

Elements from Le Mans winner
Featuring cleverly integrated custom elements reminiscent of the Le Mans-winning car, the V12 Speedster DBR1 specification offers highlights such as the iconic Aston Martin Racing Green paint finish, Clubsport White pinstripe and roundels, a Satin Silver anodised grille with Clubsport lipstick graphic, Conker saddle leather and Viridian Green technical textile/Caithness leather.

Unique Aston Martin Racing Green driver and passenger helmets sit under transparent ‘windows’, while solid silver ‘wings’ badges glint beneath transparent enamel. There’s also finely judged application of gloss carbonfibre, Caithness Green leather and satin silver brushed aluminium switchgear in the open cabin.

Satin black diamond turned 21-inch centre lock wheels are a feature of this specialist specification, which each Aston Martin V12 Speedster spending more than 50 hours in the painting process alone at the brand’s advanced paint facility.

700 ps V12 engine
At the car’s heart lies a high-performance variant of Aston Martin’s now 5.2-litre V12 Twin-Turbo engine, capable of generating an output of around 700 ps/753 Nm. Accompanied by a V12 ‘soundtrack’, this output flows to the wheels through a ZF 8-speed automatic transmission mounted towards the rear of the car. A 0 to 100 km/h time of 3.4 seconds is claimed, with a top speed of about 320 km/h.

“Creating a bespoke specification that nods to the glory of the DBR1 has been a huge privilege for my team and I, and I very much look forward to seeing these cars being driven with the same enthusiasm that we have applied to their design,” said Aston Martin’s Chief Creative Officer, Marek Reichman.

“Ekstra Ganjaran Setiap Hari” BonusLink loyalty programme extended till end of July 2021

Hari Raya Aidilfitri has just passed but for Shell Malaysia, the festive atmosphere continues and to celebrate the festivity, motorists can get extra rewards when they fuel up at Shell stations nationwide. The company has extended the ‘Ekstra Ganjaran Setiap Hari’ BonusLink loyalty programme promotion that awards customers up to 4x points from now until July 31, 2021.

“We continuously look for ways to support and delight our customers as they are at the heart of everything we do. In the spirit of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, we are giving extra rewards to our customers through the extension of the BonusLink loyalty programme promotion so that more Malaysians can earn points and redeem special treats from Shell. It’s simple, quick, and definitely rewarding,” said Shairan Huzani Husain, MD of Shell Malaysia Trading Sdn Bhd and Shell Timur Sdn Bhd.

RM50 of fuel purchases
To participate, customers simply need to swipe their BonusLink card, or use the BLINK app at Shell and pump a minimum of RM50 of Shell fuels in a single receipt. They can easily multiply their points by double, triple – and even quadruple – when they make up to 4 visits per month.

The point multiplication is only applicable within the same month and will reset on the 1st of every month, until July 31, 2021. Customers can sign up for BonusLink at any Shell station nationwide or register by downloading the BLINK app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

In addition, customers can redeem special treats in-store with as low as 100 BonusLink Points (for a limited time). Treats include popular favourites such as Yeo’s canned drink, Coca-Cola Klasik, Nescafe Tarik, Himalaya Salt candy, and Shell SELECT Keropok Ikan.

Help from Shell
“We want Malaysians to continue to enjoy exciting rewards that we have to offer with ‘Ekstra Ganjaran Setiap Hari’. With the traveling restrictions being enforced, we understand that it may be challenging for Malaysians to truly experience up to 4x points with BonusLink every time they refuel at Shell. We hope with this extension, Malaysians will be able to make the most out of their journeys with Shell,” Encik Shairan said.

He explained that the extension is also Shell’s way of helping out in the economic uncertainties Malaysians are experiencing with the nationwide MCO. “We understand it has not been easy for all; we will continue to stand with our customers, and by providing them with the extra value every time they refuel at Shell, we hope to help more Malaysians to make the most of their Ringgit. We hope our little effort will go some ways in helping Malaysians to go further,” added Encik Shairan.

Suzuki Misano Concept – merging adrenaline rush of 2 wheels with driving experience of 4

Although Suzuki is well known for motorcycles, its first motorised vehicles were actually cars and that was way back in the late 1930s. It only began making motorised bicycles in the 1950s and went back to making cars in the 1960s and accumulated experience in 2-wheelers and 4-wheelers.

So it’s not surprising that the Misano concept, a design project by 24 students at Istituto Europeo di Design (IED) in Turin, Italy, in collaboration with the Japanese manufacturer is a car that has inspiration from motorcycles. Motorcycle racing fans will, of course, know that the name is also that of a racetrack in Italy.

Only 1 metre at highest point
The Misano concept is around 4 metres in overall length and is just 1 metre above the ground at its highest point (which is the top of the roll-over hoops). The topless design adopts the classic barchetta silhouette which gives very good aerodynamics but what is unusual is the tandem 2-seat layout – like a motorcycle.

It’s not the first concept car with the passenger sitting directly behind the driver – some others that come to mind are the Volkswagen L1, Nissan Land Glider and Mercedes F300 Life Jet.

*Other concept cars with tandem seating – Nissan Land Glider (top), Mercedes F300 Life Jet (above left) and Volkswagen L1 (above right)*

Offset seating area
Unlike most of the other concepts, however, the width of the Misano is more generous with space. The seats are positioned on the left side while the right side of the cockpit us used for luggage space and to accommodate a battery pack.

Access is through the single door on the left side of the car which has a glass panel to give the driver a feel of being closer to the road. The windscreen is also motorcycle-inspired, shielding the driver’s side but not extending the full width.

No steering wheel
Another motorcycle element is the steering control. Instead of the conventional steering wheel and pedals, there is a control stick to ‘merges the adrenaline rush of two wheels, with the driving experience of four’, according to the designers. Today’s generation will probably be fine with that, having grown up on computer games and joysticks.

Eye-catching S-shaped headlights on either side of the nose and there is no grille since the Misano Concept is meant to be electrically powered. Powertrain details are not available suggesting that this is nothing more than a design study – which is very appealing.

The concept car is currently being shown to the public at Mauto, the Italian national automotive museum in Turin.

Summary of New Vehicle Sales and Production in April 2021

*Source: Monthly reports of Malaysia Automotive Association*

A year ago, new vehicle deliveries stopped as the first Movement Control Order (MCO) was in force although 141 vehicles still reached their customers. A year later, although the MCO is still in force in varying degrees, sales and deliveries continue and in April 2021, the Total Industry Volume (TIV) was the third highest in 12 months with 57,912 units registered.

Cumulative sales for the first four months of this year compared to the same period in 2021 were 89% higher,as would be expected with sales in March and April 2020 having been impacted severely and dropping to the lowest level ever.

For some brands, new vehicle supply was also a factor in April sales being 12.3% lower than March due to the global shortage of computer chips used in the many electronic systems in cars today.

On the production side, it was the same thing a year ago as plants were also ordered to stop operations and only 275 units were reported to have been completed in April 2020. This year, 51,390 vehicles were assembled locally during the same month. As mentioned earlier, shortage of computer chips – a crucial item – saw production dropping diminishing.

93% of vehicles assembled locally were passenger vehicles (excluding pickup trucks).

It should be noted that the as Mercedes-Benz Malaysia does not wish to reveal its sales numbers, they are not included in the data above.

Forecast for May
The Malaysian Automotive Association expects the TIV to continue falling, and May registrations are likely to be lower than April. Although the latest MCO allows for businesses and factories to continue operating, stricter controls on public movements may dampen sales.

Besides the effects of the MCO, the Hari Raya festive period would also be a factor in diminished sales volume. Additionally, supplies of vehicles are also likely to remain affected by the chip shortage.

F1/Round 5: Highlights & Provisional Results For 2021 Monaco Grand Prix

♦ Charles Leclerc, who had qualified with the fastest time and crashed at the end of the final session but could claim pole position on the grid, lost that position as the damage to his Ferrari’s gearbox was too great. This gave Red Bull driver Max Verstappen the pole position, with Mercedes-AMG’s Valtteri Bottas alongside. Uncharacteristically, Lewis Hamilton had qualified only in seventh (and moved up to sixth).

♦ The tightness of the circuit makes passing difficult so the status quo was maintained for most of the front runners although Alpine F1’s Fernando Alonso managed to move up two positions from his grid position to 14th.

♦ Left alone to represent Ferrari, Carlos Sainz slowly took time off the gap with Bottas which was about 3 seconds with 10 laps completed.

♦ By lap 13, gaps were beginning to open up as some drivers were urged to pick up the pace. Sergio Perez, who was 20 seconds from his Red Bull team mate, was trying hard to get past Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel.

♦ Nikita Mazepin (Haas F1) and Lando Norris (McLaren) were some of the drivers who got black and white flags to warn them about track limits. If they did it too many times, the Stewards would give them time penalities.

♦ With 29 laps done, all eyes were on the pits to see who would come in for their tyre changes. It was Lewis Hamilton who was the first, follow by his team mater Bottas was was around 63 seconds behind Verstappen. And then disaster struck for the Finn to make it worse as a front wheel could not come off the Mercedes-AMG. As a result, the tyre could not be changed – and it meant retirement for Bottas.

♦ Amazingly, Pierre Gasly (Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda), who was just ahead of Hamilton, came in and returned to the track still ahead of the Mercedes-AMG driver. But Vettel was quick to exploit the pit stops, passing Gasly and Hamilton to take fifth place.

♦ With half the 78-lap race completed, Verstappen was not secure yet as he had a lead of only 3 seconds ahead of Sainz. With Bottas out, there was a strong possibility of Hamilton losing his championship lead and implications for the team as well.

♦ With 30 laps remaining, Norris was in third – too far from Sainz but 7 seconds ahead of Perez. Vettel was a further 11 seconds but trying very hard with what has been an uncompetitive car.

♦ Hamilton was not giving up easily and pushed hard although, unlike other tracks where he could push forwardm difficulty overtaking held him back behind other cars.

♦ As the laps counted down, Perez was one of the more aggressive drivers, trying hard to pass Norris and be on the podium place instead of the McLaren driver.

♦ Yuki Tsunoda (Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda), who seemed to show promise at the start of the season, was the last car to pit and he was down in 16th position.

♦ As 10 laps remained, Hamilton came in for a new set of tyres, aiming to go flat out to the finish and improve his position from seventh and more importantly, try and set the fastest lap and get that one bonus point. He was the only driver to come into the pits twice – and he was also about to be lapped by Verstappen.

♦ Perez kept the pressure on Norris right till the end, coming within less than 2 seconds, but his fight could not continue as Verstappen crossed the finish line – and into the championship lead.

Is the Monaco Circuit the hardest on brakes in the F1 championship? (w/VIDEO)

With all its twists and turns as well as tight corners, you would think that the street circuit for the 67^th Monaco Grand Prix would be the toughest on brakes among all the circuits of the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship. However, it’s not and according to Brembo technicians, the Monaco Circuit falls into the category of tracks that present an average challenge for the brakes. On a difficulty index scale of 1 to 5, it is classified as a three, exactly the same as the tracks of the last three races.

The circuit stands out for its high aerodynamic load and the considerable percentage of braking time. The calipers and brake fluid reach high temperatures and vapour lock was a common phenomenon in the past, causing the lengthening of the brake pedal action.

Brembo carbon doesn’t melt at 3,000°C
Carbon discs began to be used in Formula 1 in the 1980s, and then spread into other motorsport competitions. Indeed, no other element offers that special combination of light weight, high thermal conductivity and absence of dilation, even at 1,000°C, a distinguishing feature of Brembo’s F1 discs.

The density of carbon is 1.7 grams per cubic centimetre, compared with 7.8 grams for steel and 7.3 grams for gray cast iron. Its thermal expansion coefficient is 1/15th that of steel and 1/11th that of cast iron. The melting point of carbon is higher than 3,000°C, compared with the 1,200°C of cast iron and 1,800°C of steel.

3 metres make all the difference
Carbon discs aren’t suitable for road use, mainly because the braking system doesn’t reach the minimum operating temperatures needed, but also due to their high consumption. Some of their benefits, however, can be found in the carbon ceramic discs of which Brembo is the main worldwide manufacturer.

Carbon ceramic discs allow a saving of 5 to 6 kgs in weight compared with traditional cast iron discs. What’s more, their lifespan may even equal that of the vehicle they’re mounted on, depending on how it’s driven. But, above all, carbon ceramic guarantees a reduction of about 3 metres in the braking distance from 100 km/h to 0 km/h compared with a traditional disc.

4.6g deceleration after the tunnel
Of the 11 braking sections of the Monaco Circuit, two are classified as very demanding on the brakes, another two are of medium difficulty, and the remaining 7 are light. The hardest for the braking system is the one that comes after the tunnel (Turn 10): the cars arrive at 307 km/h and have to get down to 90 km/h within just 121 metres. To do this, the drivers brake for 2.47 seconds, applying a load of 146 kgs on the pedal and experience a deceleration force of 4.6g.

870 braking points
Despite being the shortest World Championship track at just 3.337 kms, the Monaco Circuit has 11 braking points per lap (although only one of them is particularly intense). On 4 turns, the brakes need to be used for no more than 1.1 second. The drivers use their brakes for 18.7 seconds, corresponding to 27% of the total race time.

Notwithstanding the 7 braking points per lap where the load on the pedal is less than 90 kgs), the overall load exerted by each driver from the starting line to the checkered flag is more than 62 metric tons. Only in Singapore – also a street circuit – is the figure higher than this. It also has to be said that the braking system is used about 870 times on the Monaco track, from start to finish.

The 2021 Monaco Grand Prix will start at 3 pm in Monaco/9 pm in Malaysia tonight.

Orange Supra Turbo in ‘Fast & Furious’ movies to be auctioned next month

Next month, a car driven by Paul Walker in the first ‘Fast and Furious’ movie in 2001 will be auctioned by Barrett-Jackson in Las Vegas. It’s the orange 1994 Toyota Supra Turbo which also appeared in the 2003 instalment ‘2 Fast 2 Furious’. It was used for multiple interior and exterior shots. Under the bonnet is the famed 2JZ-GTE 3-litre turbocharged inline-6 engine mated to a 4-speed automatic transmission.

According to Barrett-Jackson, the car was prepared specially for the movie and then returned to original form with the Lamborghini Diablo Candy Orange pearl finish and Troy Lee-designed ‘Nuclear Gladiator’ motif along the side. Extensive documentation accompanies the vehicle, including a Certificate of Authenticity.

Barrett-Jackson, which bills itself as ‘The World’s Greatest Collector Car Auctions’, handled the auction of the personal collection of cars belonging to the actor who died in an accident in 2013. Walker’s collection consisted of 18 cars and 3 motorcycles and Barrett-Jackson collected a total of US$1.32 million (RM5.37 million) for the 5 cars which were auctioned at prices varying between US$220,000 (RM895,500) and US$385,000 (RM1.57 million).

The most notable was the 1995 BMW M3 Lightweight model (shown below) – not one but five – that he owned. Walker was an avid fan of BMW and had a total of seven M3s in his collection (including the 5 Lightweights).

[All images from Barrett-Jackson]

F1/Round 5: Preview & Starting Grid for 2021 Monaco Grand Prix

Race starts at 3 pm in Monaco/9 pm  in Malaysia

After a forced cancellation last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Formula 1 World Championship is able to return to the classic street circuit of Monaco this year for the fifth round. This will be the 67^th Monaco Grand Prix since the first one was held in 1950 as the second round of the inaugural Formula 1 World Championship. Although it was not run in the first half of the 1950s, when it resumed as a venue on the calendar, it would remain there every year with 2020 being the first time that there was no Monaco GP.

The Monaco circuit runs around the seaside resort city and is narrow with many tight turns, but the drivers love it. It is a challenging track with no run-offs, just concrete walls and barriers, and the relentless nature of the circuit is what makes it so special.

*This year, Aston Martin joins Mercedes-AMG to supply the FIA Official Cars. At Monaco, the Safety Car will be a Vantage (below) while the Medical Car will be a DBX SUV (above).*

“For me, personally, in terms of workload for the driver, Monaco is the toughest because there is no time to rest” said Mercedes-AMG’s Valtteri Bottas. “It is literally corner after corner, and even the straights aren’t really straight, you are always turning even just a little bit.”

“There’s really no race like it… it’s such a unique, intense weekend for the drivers and the team, with no margin for error. It puts the fire under your ass, and we love the challenge!” added his boss, Toto Wolff.

The 3.337-km circuit has been resurfaced in a number of locations and it’s in good condition, according to Mario Isola, Pirelli’s Head of F1 and Car Racing. “There’s significant track evolution, thanks also to the support events. We saw solid performance from all three compounds, with a similar time gap between all of them. We’ve seen nothing to suggest that teams will deviate from the usual one-stopper at Monaco, with the soft and the medium preferred,” he said.

The key to competitiveness is to gradually build pace through each session in order to peak during Saturday’s crucial qualifying session. That process is even more difficult this year due to the reduced duration of Friday’s practice sessions. With the narrowness of the track, it is vital to get a good position on the starting grid.

While completing a lap, the driver’s vision at high-speed and their ability to react quickly to any changes in the environment is crucial. This is especially challenging at a track like Monaco, which is narrow and twisty, with blind corners and potential surprises around every one of its 19 corners (8 left-handers and 11 right-handers).

As the weekend progresses, the drivers are filtering through different reference points to pick the quickest lines, the latest braking points and progressively build confidence. This is particularly crucial in Monaco, knowing any accidents in the practice sessions could limit their running and even their chances to take part in Qualifying.

Intense super-short, super-quick lap
With limited overtaking opportunities in Monaco, single lap pace in qualifying is vital which puts pressure on the outlap to ensure the car crosses the start line in optimum shape to begin the timed run. The driver will adjust their brake balance continuously through the outlap while weaving, accelerating and braking to generate temperature in the brakes and tyres, while also charging the ERS system so they have maximum power to deploy on the timed lap.

In Monaco, the challenge and intensity are crammed into a super-short, super-quick lap that requires maximum precision and maximum concentration. There’s no relenting… one slip of focus, and the driver and team’s hard work will be wiped away.

Hamilton at the top
Lewis Hamilton continues to lead in the Drivers Championship, as does his team. His closest challenger is Max Verstappen who is 14 points behind and whose Red Bull Racing team is also second, 29 points behind the Mercedes-AMG team.

The most successful driver at Monaco has been the late Ayrton Senna, with 6 wins that started when he was with Lotus in 1987. Senna also contributed 5 wins to McLaren’s total of 15 wins, the most of any constructor.