2025 F1 Monaco GP: Preview and Predictions

The 2025 F1 Monaco GP will be the eighth race of the season, and it comes with quite a bit of intrigue around the race weekend. The race at the principality is iconic in many ways, especially with the walls so close on this track, where errors are often fatal.

This weekend, there's special intrigue around the track as well, and it stems from the fact that this time around, we will have an intriguing new rule set where drivers have to make multiple mandatory pit stops.

The last few races at Monaco have not been great, and often it appears that something has been left on the table in terms of action. Could the multi-stops change that? What can we expect from the F1 Monaco GP? Let's take a look.

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2025 F1 Monaco GP: Preview

Key Storylines

#1 Charles Leclerc's growing frustration with Ferrari

Leclerc is quite blunt in his assessment that he cannot accept a scenario where a Ferrari is not making it to Q3. It does appear that there is a growing frustration within the driver over the consistent missteps from the Italian team and the unwillingness to even admit that things haven't worked.

The F1 Monaco GP is Leclerc's home race, and he won here last season. The aspiration of winning this time around is unlikely, but the driver would be hoping against hope that he has a good one this time around.

#2 The Red Bull resurgence

There is a resurgence at Red Bull for sure, but something that took a lot of people by surprise is the fact that the tire degradation was in control, and Max didn't lose much to Lando at Imola.

How much of that advantage transfers to Monaco? That's a hard call to make, but there's certainly some intrigue.

#3 The new ruleset

The F1 Monaco GP is going to have two mandatory pit stops this time around. Whether that helps the race or not is a good question, but it helps keep the attention on the race for a longer period. Strategy would be a key factor this time around, and it would be interesting to see what approach each team takes during the race.

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Performance Guide

In shape

It's Max Verstappen, isn't it? That win was brilliant for the Dutch driver, but how it was achieved is what makes it better. Verstappen is now just 22 points behind Oscar Piastri. The gap is still decent, but maybe he now has a car with which he can challenge the McLarens, and hence the title battle could get interesting.

Verstappen is a former F1 Monaco GP winner, and he would be interested in seeing what Red Bull is capable of this time.

Out of shape

Esteban Ocon's on-again-off-again performance this season has been a bit strange, as the French driver's start to life at Haas has not been ideal. With that being said, he's still got the most points out of that car, so it's hard to judge how things are at the American team for now.

The F1 Monaco GP is a race where he got a podium a few years back in an Alpine. Ocon has some good memories of this track, and he would be hoping to get a result for the team.

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Driver in the spotlight

This is the race weekend for the local kid Charles Leclerc. The only driver who lives in Monaco because he was born there means that passion would run high once again. The problem for Leclerc is that, unlike last season, when he won the race for the first time, it's highly unlikely that he'll repeat that feat this time around.

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2025 F1 Monaco GP: Predictions

Who wins the race?

We're going with Oscar Piastri this weekend. McLaren is going to be competitive around Monaco, and it might not have Red Bull snapping at its heels. What works for the Australian is also the fact that he has had the edge over Lando Norris around this track, and his improved version is only going to add more confidence.

It's going to be close, and we might see Mercedes, Red Bull, and Ferrari drivers try to be in the mix, but it's hard to look beyond an Oscar Piastri pole position and a win this time around.

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Biggest surprise of the weekend? (Team)

Keep an eye on Aston Martin this weekend because that team surprised a lot of people in Imola. The upgrades not only worked in qualifying, but the race pace wasn't too bad either. Every car has a few strengths and weaknesses. The Williams, for instance, tends to be a car that does better in low-downforce configuration and hence might struggle a bit this weekend.

Aston Martin might just be in shape this time around, and that could potentially help Fernando Alonso score points in the F1 Monaco GP.

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Biggest surprise of the weekend? (Driver)

Keep an eye on Yuki Tsunoda for this one because the driver's improved confidence in the car is yet to materialize in the race. The driver had bridged a lot of his gap to Max Verstappen in FP2 in Imola, only to fall away in qualifying.

Monaco is a race where confidence matters, and Yuki should have upgrades on his car as well. We're backing him to be closer to Max Verstappen this time around than he has been throughout his Red Bull stint.

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Biggest disappointment of the weekend? (Team)

Red Bull is coming to the F1 Monaco GP on the back of its win in Imola. The team would have a very high morale, but there's one problem. The car is not exactly suited for the track. Its strengths are in the fast speed sections, and the layout doesn't offer much when it comes to that.

To add to this, the car doesn't ride the bumps as well as other cars, and that's another area where a machine excels around Monaco. The weekend might not be the best for Max Verstappen in terms of his championship aspirations.

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Biggest disappointment of the weekend? (Driver)

It's a hard one, but this might go to Charles Leclerc. The Ferrari driver has become increasingly despondent with the team and has already admitted that he doesn't expect much this time around. To add to this, the 2-stop strategic variable is interesting, but it leaves room for error from a team that tends to commit a few in races.

This might not be the most memorable F1 Monaco GP for Charles Leclerc.