F1 expert says Monaco 'must be laughing' at dull Madrid GP
By Zak Jackson, MonacoViews Editorial
A leading French motorsport journalist has contrasted the new Madrid street circuit unfavourably with Monaco after a processional race at the Madring.
Frédéric Ferret, Formula 1 correspondent for L'Équipe, used his post-race column on Monday to deliver a pointed verdict on the inaugural Madrid Grand Prix: it was, in his view, a dull affair that only served to remind the sport why the Monaco Grand Prix remains irreplaceable.
Ferret's phrase - that people in Monaco must have had a good laugh watching events unfold at the Madring - captures a long-running debate in F1 circles. Critics of the Monaco GP have spent years arguing that its narrow streets produce processional racing and that the calendar would be better served by faster, more modern venues. The Madrid circuit was positioned, in part, as that kind of answer.
The reaction from one of France's most respected F1 voices carries particular weight given the proximity of Nice Matin's readership to the Principality. For Monaco residents and the Automobile Club de Monaco, which organises the Grand Prix each May, the column amounts to an unsolicited endorsement at a moment when the race's long-term place on the F1 calendar continues to be discussed behind closed doors.