The ‘crazy’ rule change which could make or break Oscar Piastri’s hopes of victory in Monaco
After disaster in Imola, Oscar Piastri will be relying heavily on McLaren engineers and strategists to make the right calls at the right time after a new rule was added to the Monaco Grand Prix.
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If McLaren’s history of stuffing things up for Oscar Piastri repeats itself, the Australian driver will have no chance of winning Sunday night’s Monaco Grand Prix.
For all the talent Piastri has, and the blistering speed his McLaren possesses, the key to winning motor racing’s jewel in the crown will ultimately be out of his hands.
Coming off a third-place finish at last week’s Grand Prix in Imola, Piastri will be relying heavily on his McLaren engineers and strategists to make the right calls at the right time after F1 bosses decided to add a new rule to the Monaco Grand Prix this year.
For all its glitz and glamour, Monaco is often a boring race because the street-circuit is too narrow for cars to overtake, turning the race into 78 laps of follow-the-leader.
To try and inject some more action into the most watched race on the Formula One calendar, a new rule requires drivers to use at least three sets of different tyres during the 260km procession.
To do that, drivers will now have to make at least two pit stops during the race, instead of the mandatory one stop required at all other races.
On a circuit where overtaking is virtually impossible, choosing the right time to stop is going to be decisive and reacting quickly to crashes will be decisive.
While none of the drivers want to see accidents happen, the reality of motorsport is that prangs do happen and they can dramatically change the outcome of a race, especially at Monaco.
Because the track is so tight and the barriers close with few run off areas, any crashes at Monaco almost always result in the race being slowed or stopped, which allows teams to change tyres without losing time or track position.
But relying on yellow or red flags is also a huge gamble. If teams mess things up, their hopes of winning will also go up in smoke in an instant.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, the reigning four-time world champion, likes the rule changes but said he has no idea how it might play out.
“I guess it can go both ways,” he said.
“It could be quite straightforward or it could go completely crazy because of safety cars coming into play or not – and making the right calls.
“Normally, when you have that one stop, once you have a good pit stop and everything is fine, then you drive to the end. You just have to stay focused and not hit the barriers, but maybe with a two-stop it can create something different.
“People might be gambling and guessing when is the right time to box.”
If Verstappen’s not sure what will happen, what hope do the rest have?
Time and time again, Red Bull have shown themselves to be masters of making the right calls under pressure, which their Dutch superstar pilot has been able to capitalise on.
But not so McLaren, especially when it comes to Piastri.
The rising Aussie talent has copped a raw deal on a number of occasions when he’s been called into the pits at the wrong times, either giving up the lead or surrendering track position to his British teammate Lando Norris who got the benefit of a free stop after the safety car was deployed.
It has led to accusations that McLaren is favouring Norris but the team insists that’s not the case and Piastri doesn’t believe that’s the case.
After winning four of the first seven races this season, Piastri leads the championship standings but says the rule change means luck could still play a big part in deciding who wins at Monaco.
“There’s different team strategies that you can deploy, but it’s very, very complicated. My head’s still kind of untwisting itself from some of the meetings we’ve had,” he told reporters in Monaco.
“I think it’s very complicated now with these two stops, also just using three sets of tyres, because if there’s red flags like we saw last year, it’s not quite as simple as what it was.
“So it’s definitely going to throw a spanner in the works for everyone. But I think if you qualify on pole, unless something goes dramatically wrong, it’s still going to be hard to be beaten.
“So I think you can roll the dice a bit more, but there’s a lot of strategic elements involved. Will it increase overtaking? No, but it will probably lead to a more complicated race.”
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Originally published as The ‘crazy’ rule change which could make or break Oscar Piastri’s hopes of victory in Monaco
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