The picturesque Monaco will welcome Formula One to its backyard this weekend in what will be round 7 of the 2022 Grand Prix season.
World champion and current driver leader Max Verstappen will look to extend his slender lead when lights out is called on Sunday, while Ferrari will look to bounce back from their struggles last weekend in Spain.
For Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, this is a home Grand Prix.
Verstappen (110 points), however, will be buoyed by the fact that he comes to a track he won at last year.
Leclerc (who was meant to start from pole position last year) is currently second on the driver standings on 104 points.
The 24-year-old failed to take the start last year following a pre-race driveshaft issue.
As far as Constructor standings are concerned, Red Bull and Ferrari lead Mercedes, McLaren and Alfa Romeo to make the top five going into this weekend.
Red Bull - 195
Ferrari - 169
Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 110
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 104
Sergio Perez (Red Bull) - 85
George Russell (Mercedes) - 74
Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) - 65
The palatial Monaco Grand Prix is always a hive of activity with celebrities and A-listers attending, and it was tennis ace Serena Williams who waved the chequered flag to signal the end of the race last year.
On the track itself, the Ferrari and Red Bull duel is set to continue; the Mercedes will look for more improvements while the McLaren will hope both their drivers can show consistency from first practice right through to Sunday.
- 1950 - First Grand Prix
- 78 - Number of laps
- 260km - Total race distance
- 3.337km - Circuit length
- 1:12.909 - Lap record (Lewis Hamilton)
The 2021 edition finished with Verstappen, Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris on the podium, and few would bet against the Dutchman doing the business again here.
Six more rounds remain for this half of the season after Monaco, thereafter the drivers will take a break beginning 31 July in Hungary, and return on 26 August in Belgium.
It's always a tight squeeze around Monaco's twists and turns ??#MonacoGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/uRTmOoR4YT
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 25, 2022
In terms of those who will line up on Sunday, Sebastian Vettel, Hamilton, Daniel Ricciardo and Verstappen have also recorded victories in Monaco.
- "We thought it would be one of the toughest weekends we have had all season. It's turned into the opposite." (Norris, after finishing 3rd).
- "Poor. Really, really poor performance from the team." (Hamilton, after finishing 7th).
- "It was a good day for us. Both cars in the points. That's great for the team." (Lance Stroll, after finishing 8th).
- "We just didnt have the pace, which made the race very, very tricky." (George Russell, at Williams, after finishing 14th).
- "It's a difficult one to take. And I feel sad for the team." (Leclerc after his DNS)
