Verstappen and Ferrari target F1 history - Monaco GP stats and facts

The Monaco Grand Prix is packed with perhaps more F1 history than any other event on the calendar and with history comes statistics.

Max Verstappen heads to Monaco after taking the championship lead for the first time this year but faces a stiff challenge from Ferrari and Charles Leclerc to remain there.

Here are all the stats and facts you need ahead of the latest edition of the Monaco Grand Prix.

Verstappen on course for Vettel Red Bull records

Max Verstappen will become the first Red Bull driver to win four successive races since Sebastian Vettel's incredible run of nine consecutive wins in 2013 should he take victory on Sunday.

Alternatively, if the reigning champion simply finishes in the top three, he will equal Vettel’s total of 65 podiums with the Red Bull team.

Red Bull's previous three wins at Monaco have come with differently-badged engines - Renault [2011], TAG Heuer [2018] and Honda [2021]. Will they add Red Bull Powertrains to the list this weekend?

Ferrari history in the making

Charles Leclerc secured pole position in Monaco last year to draw Ferrari level with McLaren for the most qualifying successes in the principality with 11.

Should Leclerc or Carlos Sainz lead the way on Saturday, the Maranello squad will take the outright record.

Leclerc could also become the first driver to secure back-to-back Monaco poles since Nico Rosberg in 2013 and '14.

But in three races, the Monégasque driver has endured a spate of back luck as he has never taken the chequered flag at his home event. He even failed to finish the preceding two races when competing in F2.

But Sainz enjoys a considerably better record in Monaco as he has scored points and reached Q3 on every occasion.

Senna the Monaco benchmark

Monaco exudes history like no other F1 venue and this is felt when looking through the list of the most successful drivers on the famous streets. Ayrton Senna leads the way with six wins, followed by Graham Hill and Michael Schumacher with five apiece.

Senna holds the record for the most consecutive wins at a circuit, a feat he achieved by winning every Monaco race between 1989-93, although it was matched by Lewis Hamilton's Spanish Grand Prix successes between 2017-21.

The Brazilian also has five poles at this venue, ahead of Juan Manuel Fangio, Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart and Alain Prost, all at four.

Of the current roster, Hamilton has three victories in addition to two poles. Fernando Alonso, Daniel Ricciardo, Sebastian Vettel and Verstappen have all also topped the podium.

Front row or bust

No driver has won from below third on the grid in the last 25 years.

Olivier Panis was the last driver to achieve the feat in 1996 and the Frenchman also holds the record for taking victory from the lowest starting position, 14th, in a bizarre race that saw just three drivers cross the finish line.

They say victory is the sweetest where the battle is the greatest. Monaco is the most coveted track on which to triumph for a driver and nine have taken their maiden race win here, including the likes of Juan Manuel Fangio, Jack Brabham, Denny Hulme and most recently, Jarno Trulli.

Monaco overtakes at a premium

The Circuit de Monaco saw an average of 11.66 overtakes in races between 2014-16 but this statistic dipped drastically to just 2.75 overtakes on average from 2017 to date.

Each of the last three Monaco Grands Prix has seen just one race leader throughout - Verstappen [2021], Hamilton [2019] and Ricciardo [2018].

The last time a Monaco race saw more than two race leaders was in 2012.

With limited overtaking opportunities on offer, qualifying higher up becomes paramount for teams. Over 68 per cent of all races have been won from the front row.

Historic Monaco change

At 3.337km, it is easily the shortest circuit on the F1 calendar. It is also the only track that does not adhere to the FIA’s mandated minimum track length of 3.5km.

The FIA also has a minimum race distance rule of 305km, which Monaco is exempt from. The Monaco Grand Prix lasts 260km over 78 laps.

The race weekend is set to undergo a historic change on this occasion. It has traditionally been held on the weekend of Ascension Day, with free practice taking place on Thursday.

In a bid to condense the F1 calendar, however, Monaco will be a three-day event this year onwards.

Miscellaneous Monaco stats

The Monaco Grand Prix is one of the oldest and most prestigious events in the world of motorsport. It first came into being almost a century ago in 1929.

The race was founded by Antony Noghès, who also helped create the Rallye Monte-Carlo in the early 20th century. It was Noghès who brought forward the idea of waving a chequered flag to signal the end of a grand prix. In his honour, the last corner around the Circuit de Monaco was named after him - Virage Antony Noghès.

The event was included in the inaugural world championship in 1950 and has since hosted 67 races.

Cars reach a top speed of 290kph. In comparison, Monza is 60kph faster. The track also contains the slowest corner in F1, the Grand Hotel [formerly Loews] Hairpin, which is taken at approx 50kph.

McLaren is the most successful team with 15 wins. It is the most wins they have accumulated at any one circuit.

Surprisingly, last year’s race ran incident-free without a safety car/virtual safety car period, a first since 2009.

Since 2010, the race winner has gone on to win the title on just three occasions - 2011, 2019 and 2021.

Sundaram Ramaswami -Twitter/Instagram - @f1statsguru