The fourth race weekend of the 2020/21 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship will take place on the legendary street circuit of Monaco
The 2020/21 Monaco E-Prix will be held on the famous Monaco Grand Prix Circuit for the first time.
This weekend (8 May), the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship will visit Monaco for the fourth time in the history of the series. The seventh round of the current campaign is also the first Monaco E-Prix since Season 5; the Principality was omitted from the 2019/20 itinerary owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The previous three races through the streets of Monaco took place on a shortened 1.756 km version of the famed street circuit. On this occasion, Formula E will race for the first time on the Grand Prix Circuit which is also due to host the 2021 Formula One Monaco Grand Prix two weeks after the E-Prix.
Apart from a few minor adjustments to the kerbs in some corners, the 3.318 km circuit will be identical to the F1 layout. Monaco will thus be the third track in a row to be more than three kilometres in length this season, the other two were Rome and Valencia. It is an unusual situation for the Formula E calendar, which tends to feature shorter street circuits.
Both Nyck and Stoffel live in Monte Carlo, so the Monaco E-Prix constitutes a “home” race for them. Nyck already knows the circuit from his three years in Formula 2, having won twice in the Principality (2017 and 2019).
Stoffel has competed on the streets of Monte Carlo before in both Formula One and GP2; he won a GP2 race at the track in 2015. He was also on the grid in Season 5, the last time that Formula E was contested in Monaco.
Unlike the first three race weekends this year, the Monaco E-Prix is not a double header – there will be only one race. Formula E will consequently revert to its usual schedule, with all sessions taking place on the same day. The two free practice sessions will get underway on Saturday morning at 08:00 and 10:15 local time (CEST) respectively. Qualifying is set for 12:00 CEST, with the race itself starting at 16:04 CEST.
Ian James: “Setting off for Monaco while leading both the teams’ and drivers’ standings certainly feels good. It shows the efforts we put into our FE programme are paying off, and that the team is always pushing itself to improve – no matter what is being thrown at them. Having said that, we know the season has only really just started, and leading the championship at this stage isn’t what counts in the end.”
Nyck de Vries: “A fortnight ago, we had a solid and rewarding weekend in Valencia, where I was able to take my second win of the season. Now I hope we can have an unblemished weekend in Monaco and rack up more points.”
Stoffel Vandoorne: “The longer track should suit Formula E a lot better; it should make the energy management more balanced and also the racing more exciting, because there are better overtaking opportunities.”