Mercedes F1 star George Russell calls for Monaco Grand Prix overhaul

George Russell, Mercedes, Monaco, 2025 — Photo: © IMAGO

Monaco Grand Prix

Mercedes F1 star George Russell calls for Monaco Grand Prix overhaul

Mercedes F1 star George Russell was not happy with the FIA's Monaco GP rule change

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Tuesday 27 May 2025 09:57

Mercedes Formula 1 star George Russell has suggested a complete overhaul to the way the Monaco Grand Prix is run following a controversial change at last weekend's event.

F1 headed to the historic Monte Carlo track for the eighth round of the 2025 campaign where the FIA introduced a mandatory two-stop rule as a trial to make the race more entertaining.

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Despite its rich history on the F1 calendar, it has long been suggested that the issue with Monaco is the fact that it has become a race won in qualifying thanks to the narrow streets making it nearly impossible to overtake on in a modern F1 car.

For this year's grand prix, every driver was obliged to change tyres on two occasions – in essence being forced to pit twice as there were no red flags – a rule which saw reigning champion Max Verstappen forced to give up his race lead on the last lap, leading to a maiden Monaco victory for McLaren's Lando Norris.

The papaya outfit have now extended their lead in the drivers' standings after another double podium, with their stellar performances putting them 172 points ahead of closest constructors' rivals Mercedes.

Monaco produced a weekend to forget for the Silver Arrows on the other hand, with neither Russell nor rookie team-mate Kimi Antonelli able to finish in the points on Sunday.

Does the Monaco Grand Prix need to change?

The FIA's trial at making the Monaco GP a mandatory two-stopper was deemed a failure by the drivers themselves after the top three finishers in Sunday's race still crossed the line in the same order they qualified in.

Perhaps no one was more critical of the rule change than Russell, who took matters into his own hands to spice up this year's race.

Stuck behind the tactically slow-moving Williams of Alex Albon, Russell clearly had enough of obeying the rules, overtaking the number 23 car at the Nouvelle Chicane 49 laps into the 78-lap race.

When instructed to give the position back, Russell refused, saying: "I'll take the penalty, he's driving erratically," before then being slapped with a drive-through penalty.

Speaking to F1 media after the Monaco GP, Russell said: "We definitely need to have a real think about what the solution is here in Monaco. I appreciate trying something this year in the two-stop. Clearly, it did not work at all."

Whilst debating the issues with this year's race, the 27-year-old proceeded to suggest an entire rethink of how the event is run if it is to remain on the F1 calendar.

Russell continued, stating: "For all of the drivers, qualifying is the most exhilarating moment of the weekend. Do we accept that? There should be no race, and it's a qualifying race. You do one on Saturday, one on Sunday. The guy who qualifies pole gets some points and gets a little trophy, and the one on Sunday gets some more points.

"That's what we love most. I think that's what you guys enjoy watching the most. And 99 per cent of the other people in Monaco are here sipping champagne on the yacht, so they don't really care...

"Driving four seconds off the pace here is dead easy. You effectively can put an F2 car out there and they've got a chance of holding up an F1 car. I don't know what the solution is. We were lucky in '22 and '23 that the wet races offered some excitement."

Max Verstappen Lewis Hamilton Mercedes FIA George Russell Monaco Grand Prix