Love or hate the Monte Carlo race, it certainly is one of the main events on the F1 calendar. As soon as the photos start pouring in of the sunny skies and blue seas surrounding the harbour, we know we're in for a special weekend. The track holds its own unique challenges, but the drivers are more than up for the fight - all wanting to take the honour of winning the Monaco Grand Prix.

Event schedule

With tyre talk dominating more than ever, and Pirelli's potential tweaks for the race in Canada, Monaco going to be under a lot of scrutiny. Qualifying for the event is one of the key parts of the weekend, as overtaking can be tricky around the twisting streets. Every part of the circuit is recognisable and steeped in F1 history, and if the racing is half as good as we have seen so far this year, we're in for a treat.

Support racing for this event includes Renault 3.5, GP2 and Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.

The weather

Traditional views of Monaco would suggest gorgeous sunny days with beautiful blue skies, and rippling crisp calm seas. This year looks to have some of that, but there's also the potential for rain, as showers move in and threaten to pour down on Saturday.

Circuit map

It's not a surprise to see that Monaco only has the one DRS zone. Although the FIA are busy trying to increase each circuit's DRS capacity to double that, Monaco just doesn't have the straight sections of track to allow that to happen.

This weekend will see the detection zone well before the final corner, with activation coming around the last turn and onto the home straight. In previous seasons, the FIA have had to ban DRS use through the tunnel during practice and qualifying, but as this is now limited to the zones in question, it shouldn't be a problem.

The circuit

The track itself is a crazy, twisting street circuit, with looming buildings, a stretch of tunnel and no margin for error. It’s a challenge, a hazard, and it surely wouldn’t make the calendar if presented to the FIA bosses today.

However, the heritage behind the event makes it exciting and special, and despite a tendency towards the processional, the racing is rarely dull.

There’s no room for overtaking, you will only occasionally find a driver risking his car by trying to squeeze past another just inches from the barrier.

The main action at Monaco comes from mistakes made, crashes between two cars, or collisions with the barrier. The Grand Hotel hairpin is often a place where drivers misjudge the distances and incidents occur.

Tyre compounds

There are some parts of the Monaco weekend that are predictable, and that Pirelli will bring the soft and super-soft was never in doubt. Well, until the last race anyway. But it is the expected rubber that arrives in Monte Carlo, although the Italian manufacturer believes their wet tyres may get a run this weekend too.

So we’d expect the supersoft – which was last seen in Australia – to be the tyre to qualify on and the soft tyre the one for the race. Monaco is the circuit that places the least demands on tyres all year, which is why we can run the two softest and fastest here.

- Paul Hembery

Press conference schedule

Official press conferences are organised by the FIA and happen four times during the weekend. The qualifying and post race press conferences will take place after the television unilateral interviews.

Race stewards

The FIA stewarding process was changed recently to include a former F1 driver to offer added insight. These are the stewards overseeing this weekend's action.