The Monaco Grand Prix will receive additional mandatory pitstops to promote more eventful racing during Formula 1 grands prix at the principality - as the FIA ratified further new rules at its latest commission meeting.
It led to a number of resolutions across the championship's sporting, technical, and financial regulations, but also hosted discussions with regards to improving the spectacle in Monaco.
The commission agreed that introducing more mandatory pitstops at the Monte Carlo race, although the specific number was not disclosed, was the best way forward to achieve this; usually, the Monaco GP is treated as a one-stop contest due to the importance of track position and low tyre wear.
It also ratified the additional wing flex tests set to be imposed on the teams in response to the controversies over flexing aerodynamics across 2024; more stringent rear wing tests will be imposed from the start of the 2025 season, while the same will also be applied to the front wing tests from the Spanish Grand Prix.
Furthermore, the driver cooling system parameters have now been defined as it is set to be included within the 2025 regulations for races where a 'heat hazard' is declared.
Restrictions on the number of gearboxes have now been deleted, with the FIA citing that the current reliability of the components is such that it no longer requires monitoring.
The statement also mentions that there will be clarifications to the start procedure of sprint and grand prix races to cover off any aborted start confusion - seen most notably at last year's Brazilian Grand Prix.
There will also be updates to the 2026 technical regulations to boost the aerodynamic performance and energy management systems as F1 switches to a near-50/50 split between power delivery of the internal combustion engine and hybrid components.
Autosport says: Will extra pitstops improve the Monaco Grand Prix?
In the case of many drivers, the early red flag in the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix rendered it an almost non-stop race; under the current rules, the drivers could switch tyre compounds when brought into the pits and did not need to complete another. Only six drivers visited the pitlane for a second time in last year's contest.
One-stop races are common in Monaco given the paucity of overtakes, particularly as the current cars are almost as large as the yachts that stand akimbo along the waterfront. Track position is the important factor; get that, and 99 percent of the race takes care of itself. Pitstops are nothing more than an inconvenience.
While F1 waits for 2026's narrower-track cars, it's worth trying out an extra mandatory stop in Monaco to at least present some degree of strategic latitude. Stops during the grand prix's second act, assuming an event with few stoppages, will all come down to timing and once more present the strategists with performance overlaps of each compound - while also considering the relative track position of other cars.
Of course, it's contrived; the mandatory stop rule is already an artificial means to giving races some degree of jeopardy. Without that, most would probably not even stop given the low macro roughness and low energy of Monaco's streets - creating an even more extensive procession...
Overtakes should not be the sole measure of an F1's race's value but, short of changing the circuit in its current form, trying to ensure Monaco at least has some degree of positional changes can only be done strategically.
Adding an extra stop won't spin the kind of magic that'll suddenly make Monaco's streets a paragon of excitement, but it should at least offer a little bit more than what we're used to. Even in last year's case, where the early red flags ensured the strategists could simply bask in the French Riviera's gleaming sun, an extra stop would at least shine the light upon them in a slightly different manner.
