Drivers threatened with ban ahead of F1 Monaco Grand Prix after 'dangerous driving'

Norris, Leclerc, Piastri, generic, Monaco GP, 2025 — Photo: © IMAGO

Monaco Grand Prix

Drivers threatened with ban ahead of Monaco Grand Prix after 'dangerous driving'

A ban has been threatened by authorities

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Tuesday 21 April 2026 22:55

A five-day ban has been threatened by authorities for drivers ahead of the 2026 F1 Monaco Grand Prix.

F1 heads to the principality in June for the sixth round of the 2026 season, with it being later in the season than the iconic event usually falls.

This is to eradicate the previous clash between the Monaco GP and Indianapolis 500, another iconic motorsport race that has been clashing on the racing calendar with Monaco for many years.

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The later date of the Monaco GP is also designed to streamline the sport’s global logistics and help F1 move toward its sustainability goals, including its target of reaching Net Zero carbon emissions by 2030.

But ahead of this year's event, which organisers are hoping will see more overtaking compared with previous years due to the smaller, more nimble F1 cars brought about by the recent regulations overhaul in F1, the Monegasque government have introduced new guidance for road car users.

They have announced that an immediate five-day vehicle immobilisation will apply to any road traffic offence that is committed during the Monaco GP weekend, as well as the Top Marques Monaco automotive show which takes place in May.

Owners caught committing a road offence at these times will have their cars seized by police and will not be able to get them back for five days.

These measures have been brought in because of unauthorised gatherings of sports cars that authorities have noticed are pretty common during these two events which spill onto public roads and can generate dangerous driving, traffic violations and noise disturbance for residents.

The five-day vehicle immobilisation period has previously been used in past years, and will act as a deterrence for organisers of these impromptu events.

Will the Monaco GP be more exciting this year?

Previous editions of the iconic race around the streets of Monaco have not provided fans with much excitement, as the width of modern-day F1 cars make it almost impossible to overtake.

In 2025, F1 tried to shake things up by introducing a mandatory two-stop strategy to at least bring more variation when it came to strategy.

But most teams and drivers opted to pit on exactly the same lap on both occasions, and very few actually risked doing something a little different.

This year, however, that rule has been scrapped, and we will not have the mandatory two-stop race around the principality.

However, the new regulations might just increase the excitement of the race.

So far in 2026, we have seen drastically increased amounts of overtakes at the three grands prix compared to the same events 12 months ago.

While the boost and overtake modes have at times made overtaking too easy for the drivers, in Monaco this could prove to be a God send for fans hoping to see more overtakes around the streets of Monaco.

Couple this with the fact that F1 cars are much narrower and lighter than they were in 2025, and we could actually see an exciting Monaco GP.

The track signed a contract extension last year, and will remain on the F1 calendar until at least the 2035 season.

F1 2026 Regulations: Every new rule and car change explained

F1 Monaco Grand Prix