Wurz's three ideas on how to increase the chances of overtaking in Monaco

      Alex Wurz is not only a veteran of Formula 1 and the WEC, not only a television commentator and chairman of the GPDA association, but also a businessman, and his company Wurz Design designs race tracks.

      Of course, Alex, like everyone who saw the Monaco Grand Prix, is unhappy with how events unfolded last Sunday, but unlike most critics, he made specific suggestions on how to do at least something to improve the overtaking situation on the narrow city ring.

      His proposals seem quite reasonable, although their implementation will require very large investments and large-scale work from the authorities of the Mediterranean principality. However, this is another problem, and the essence of the ideas outlined in the four-and-a-half-minute video is as follows.

      Move the Nouvelle chicane forward

      According to Wurz, he has already discussed this with the drivers of the championship, and they agree that lengthening the straight at the exit of the tunnel and shifting the chicane closer to the Tabac corner can have a certain positive effect.

      If you move the chicane about 80 meters forward, taking into account all the physical limitations that exist on the embankment running along the harbor, it will become more difficult for riders to defend their position from rival attacks. It's too easy now because of the bumps on this section of the highway and its slight right-hand bend.

      At the same time, it is necessary to accurately calculate the new location of the chicane so that the distance from the exit to the Tabac remains large enough, then the riders will have time to accelerate again, and before turning they will have to take their foot off the gas.

      "Of course, it is very important to work out the configuration of the new chicane in detail in order to increase the likelihood of overtaking," explained Wurz, "including calculating the exact location of the curbs and the width of the track, which can also be increased ... although this will require significant engineering work."

      Change the configuration of the Rascasse turn

      This is a simpler task than shifting the chicane, but if it is implemented, the probability of overtaking in Rascasse will increase slightly. To do this, the apex of this turn should be shifted 2-3 meters closer to the outer edge of the highway, and the highway itself should be expanded to the left as much as possible, as far as the location of the entrance to the parking lot that is located there allows.

      "If the apex is shifted towards the outer edge of the track, then the trajectory at the entrance to the turn will definitely change," Alex believes. "Then we make the turn more open so that the attacking rider tries to take the inner trajectory while braking, which means that the one in front will either have to defend himself or agree. that he left the door open himself.

      If you defend, your exit speed will obviously decrease, and then you will create a line of cars behind you, and all the opponents will put more pressure on you.

      I think it's not such a clever idea, and it's quite easy to implement, but it should at least help increase the intensity of the fight, and possibly the likelihood of overtaking."

      The Fairmont Hairpin

      The Austrian's third idea is to expand as much as possible the entrance to the Fairmont stud (formerly Loews). According to Wurz, there is an opportunity to expand the route by 2-2.4 meters not only at the entrance, but also at the exit of this famous hairpin.

      "The hairpin is very narrow, so we need to make the track wider and turn to the right at the exit, to do this, remove the curb and asphalt this area up to the physical wall in order to increase the turning radius.

      The real racing trajectory will not change, as well as the nature of the turn itself, but the likelihood of an attack on braking will increase if you manage to dive into the inner radius.."

      Three such measures outlined in the video from Wurz Design, according to their author's calculations, will allow you to correct the situation somewhat, and there is a theoretical possibility to implement such a project, moreover Alex emphasizes that the nature of the track will not change in principle, which is also important.

      Alex Wurz can be trusted, because he has not only a very rich racing experience: his company has already been involved in the design of a new circuit in Saudi Arabia, as well as a track in Rwanda, if Formula 1 decides to start expanding to the African continent from this country.