2006 Monaco Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Fernando Alonso won his first Monaco Grand Prix after a weekend dominated by Michael Schumacher’s controversial qualifying stoppage. Juan Pablo Montoya finished second and David Coulthard delivered Red Bull’s first podium as several leading challengers retired.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Fernando Alonso	Renault
Pole time	1:13.962
Fastest lap	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari
Fastest-lap time	1:15.143 on lap 74
First	Fernando Alonso	Renault
Second	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren
Third	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
25 May 2006	Practice 1	11:00
25 May 2006	Practice 2	14:00
27 May 2006	Practice 3	11:00
27 May 2006	Qualifying	14:00
28 May 2006	Race	14:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Fernando Alonso arrived at round 7 leading the 2006 F1 World Championship on 54 points, with Michael Schumacher on 39. Renault headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 78 points.

Race entries

The 11 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Monaco Grand Prix. Alexander Wurz, Anthony Davidson, Giorgio Mondini, Neel Jani, Robert Doornbos, Robert Kubica also took part in practice.

Free Practice

Fernando Alonso led Thursday morning, with Giancarlo Fisichella also near the front for Renault. Kimi Räikkönen’s McLaren stopped in smoke after only a few laps, raising fears of an engine penalty before the team established it could continue without a change. Robert Kubica also lost running to mechanical trouble, making the narrow streets an unforgiving place to begin the weekend’s preparation.

Wurz topped the afternoon, but Davidson caused two interruptions: first dislodging a bollard and then crashing at Sainte Devote, tearing a front wheel from his Honda. Robert Kubica hit the barrier at Rascasse, while Mondini and Franck Montagny spun. Kimi Räikkönen returned after his morning problem, and Juan Pablo Montoya’s third place suggested McLaren could challenge Renault.

Fernando Alonso remained quickest on Saturday morning, with Michael Schumacher close behind. David Coulthard and the Williams drivers ran strongly, offering encouragement for teams hoping to exploit Monaco’s unusual demands. Toyota was much further back as it continued working with the revised TF106B, and finding a clear lap remained essential before qualifying.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2006 Monaco Grand Prix FP1, 25 May 2006

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Fernando Alonso	Renault	1:16.712	13
2	36	Anthony Davidson	Honda	+0.160s	31
3	2	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	+0.176s	12
4	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	+0.261s	8
5	4	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren	+0.746s	7
6	38	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+1.157s	19
7	35	Alexander Wurz	Williams	+1.237s	28
8	12	Jenson Button	Honda	+1.617s	12
9	37	Robert Doornbos	Red Bull Racing	+1.682s	23
10	11	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	+1.694s	12
11	14	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing	+1.735s	10
12	10	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+1.768s	15
13	9	Mark Webber	Williams	+1.859s	17
14	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.983s	15
15	8	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+1.991s	11
16	7	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	+2.309s	14
17	17	Jacques Villeneuve	BMW Sauber	+2.534s	16
18	15	Christian Klien	Red Bull Racing	+2.831s	10
19	40	Neel Jani	Toro Rosso	+2.939s	25
20	39	Giorgio Mondini	Midland	+2.957s	29
21	18	Tiago Monteiro	Midland	+3.018s	17
22	20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Toro Rosso	+3.145s	16
23	21	Scott Speed	Toro Rosso	+3.425s	13
24	19	Christijan Albers	Midland	+3.840s	17
25	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri	+4.432s	23
26	23	Franck Montagny	Super Aguri	+4.882s	21
27	16	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+49.880s	1
28	3	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren	No time	3

Free Practice 2 Classification

2006 Monaco Grand Prix FP2, 25 May 2006

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	35	Alexander Wurz	Williams	1:15.907	27
2	36	Anthony Davidson	Honda	+0.168s	15
3	4	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren	+0.231s	24
4	1	Fernando Alonso	Renault	+0.314s	18
5	37	Robert Doornbos	Red Bull Racing	+0.385s	36
6	3	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren	+0.800s	18
7	2	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	+0.814s	23
8	14	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing	+0.963s	19
9	12	Jenson Button	Honda	+0.996s	20
10	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.344s	25
11	8	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+1.418s	25
12	18	Tiago Monteiro	Midland	+1.532s	30
13	11	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	+1.549s	24
14	39	Giorgio Mondini	Midland	+1.590s	30
15	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	+1.696s	25
16	20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Toro Rosso	+1.731s	31
17	9	Mark Webber	Williams	+1.837s	19
18	7	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	+1.886s	26
19	10	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+1.938s	15
20	17	Jacques Villeneuve	BMW Sauber	+1.967s	13
21	15	Christian Klien	Red Bull Racing	+2.216s	22
22	16	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+2.350s	10
23	21	Scott Speed	Toro Rosso	+2.513s	29
24	19	Christijan Albers	Midland	+2.523s	24
25	23	Franck Montagny	Super Aguri	+2.824s	19
26	38	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+3.366s	12
27	40	Neel Jani	Toro Rosso	+3.538s	27
28	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri	+3.896s	31

Free Practice 3 Classification

2006 Monaco Grand Prix FP3, 27 May 2006

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Fernando Alonso	Renault	1:13.823	19
2	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	+0.208s	20
3	2	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	+0.233s	20
4	14	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing	+0.727s	19
5	10	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+0.800s	17
6	4	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren	+0.962s	21
7	9	Mark Webber	Williams	+0.981s	16
8	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.019s	24
9	12	Jenson Button	Honda	+1.197s	21
10	3	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren	+1.301s	17
11	11	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	+1.460s	20
12	15	Christian Klien	Red Bull Racing	+1.653s	19
13	16	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+1.768s	20
14	18	Tiago Monteiro	Midland	+1.986s	26
15	19	Christijan Albers	Midland	+2.243s	26
16	20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Toro Rosso	+2.324s	27
17	21	Scott Speed	Toro Rosso	+2.378s	21
18	17	Jacques Villeneuve	BMW Sauber	+2.462s	27
19	8	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+2.633s	24
20	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri	+3.325s	24
21	7	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	+4.037s	21
22	23	Franck Montagny	Super Aguri	+4.111s	21

Qualifying

Michael Schumacher set the fastest time but lost his qualifying times after the stewards judged that his stop at Rascasse had deliberately obstructed rivals. Fernando Alonso inherited pole, with Mark Webber alongside and Kimi Räikkönen third. The incident prevented Fernando Alonso from completing a potentially faster final lap and became the defining controversy of the weekend.

Felipe Massa had already crashed at Casino Square in Q1, leaving Ferrari facing a recovery from the rear. Giancarlo Fisichella also lost his three fastest laps for impeding David Coulthard and dropped down the order. Jenson Button missed Q3, while David Coulthard secured a place in the final shootout for Red Bull.

Qualifying Classification

2006 Monaco Grand Prix Qualifying, 27 May 2006

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	1	Fernando Alonso	Renault	1:14.232	1:13.622	1:13.962	25
2	9	Mark Webber	Williams	1:14.305	1:13.728	1:14.082	31
3	3	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren	1:13.887	1:13.532	1:14.140	26
4	4	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren	1:14.483	1:14.295	1:14.664	32
5	11	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	1:14.766	1:14.312	1:15.804	31
6	8	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	1:14.883	1:14.211	1:15.857	24
7	14	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing	1:15.090	1:13.687	1:16.426	30
8	10	Nico Rosberg	Williams	1:14.888	1:13.909	1:16.636	33
9	2	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	1:14.614	1:13.647	1:17.260	26
10	7	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	1:14.412	1:14.398	—	14
11	15	Christian Klien	Red Bull Racing	1:14.489	1:14.747	—	12
12	20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Toro Rosso	1:15.314	1:14.969	—	20
13	12	Jenson Button	Honda	1:15.085	1:14.982	—	17
14	17	Jacques Villeneuve	BMW Sauber	1:15.316	1:15.052	—	16
15	16	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	1:15.324	1:15.137	—	20
16	19	Christijan Albers	Midland	1:15.598	—	—	8
17	18	Tiago Monteiro	Midland	1:15.993	—	—	8
18	21	Scott Speed	Toro Rosso	1:16.236	—	—	7
19	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri	1:17.276	—	—	6
20	23	Franck Montagny	Super Aguri	1:17.502	—	—	7
21	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	No time	—	—	2
EX	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	1:15.118	1:13.709	1:13.898	—

Giancarlo Fisichella set the 5th fastest time of 1:14.396. However, as he was found to have impeded David Coulthard on a flying lap, Fisichella had his three fastest lap times deleted, dropping him behind Montoya, Barrichello, Trulli, Coulthard and Rosberg. He thus started from 9th position.

Felipe Massa failed to set a qualifying time as his car was unfit to race after he damaged it during the first knock-out phase.

Michael Schumacher set the fastest time of 1:13.898. However, during the final lap of qualifying, Schumacher came to a stop at the La Rascasse hairpin, resulting in a yellow flag, meaning that other drivers could not go at maximum speed. After the session there was immediate complaint from the other teams that this has been a deliberate move by Ferrari to ensure Schumacher started in pole position, since Alonso had been on pace to beat his time. Although Schumacher insisted he had simply made an error, a stewards’ inquiry resulted in all his qualifying times being deleted. Later on, Schumacher opted to start from the pitlane.

What happened in the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix?

Fernando Alonso led away, but Kimi Räikkönen soon passed Mark Webber and stayed close to the Renault. Mark Webber remained in contention through the first stops, while Michael Schumacher began recovering from a pit-lane start. The leading trio’s contest ended when Mark Webber retired with an exhaust failure and Kimi Räikkönen suffered a fire-related electrical failure during the resulting safety-car period.

Juan Pablo Montoya moved into second as Fernando Alonso pulled clear. Rubens Barrichello lost time to a pit-lane speeding penalty, and Jarno Trulli’s promising run towards a podium ended with hydraulic failure late in the race. Those setbacks promoted David Coulthard into third, giving Red Bull a landmark result.

Fernando Alonso won comfortably from Juan Pablo Montoya and David Coulthard. Rubens Barrichello held off Michael Schumacher for fourth, with Giancarlo Fisichella, Nick Heidfeld and Ralf Schumacher completing the points. Fernando Alonso’s victory extended his championship advantage, while Ferrari was left to reflect on a weekend shaped by its qualifying troubles.

After the race, Fernando Alonso headed the drivers’ standings with 64 points, followed by Michael Schumacher on 43. Renault led the constructors’ table on 91, with Ferrari on 63.

2006 Monaco Grand Prix race results

The 2006 Monaco Grand Prix was held on 28 May 2006, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	1	Fernando Alonso	Renault	78	1:43:43.116	10
2	4	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren	78	+14.567	8
3	14	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing	78	+52.298	6
4	11	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	78	+53.337	5
5	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	78	+53.830	4
6	2	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	78	+1:02.072	3
7	16	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	77	+1 lap	2
8	7	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	77	+1 lap	1
9	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	77	+1 lap	0
10	20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Toro Rosso	77	+1 lap	0
11	12	Jenson Button	Honda	77	+1 lap	0
12	19	Christijan Albers	Midland	77	+1 lap	0
13	21	Scott Speed	Toro Rosso	77	+1 lap	0
14	17	Jacques Villeneuve	BMW Sauber	77	+1 lap	0
15	18	Tiago Monteiro	Midland	76	+2 laps	0
16	23	Franck Montagny	Super Aguri	75	+3 laps	0
17	8	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	72	Hydraulics	0
Ret	15	Christian Klien	Red Bull Racing	56	Transmission	0
Ret	10	Nico Rosberg	Williams	51	Throttle	0
Ret	3	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren	50	Fire	0
Ret	9	Mark Webber	Williams	48	Exhaust	0
Ret	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri	46	Electrical	0

Michael Schumacher started the race from the pitlane.

2006 Monaco Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	74	1:15.143	160.014
2	3	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren	19	1:15.325	159.628
3	1	Fernando Alonso	Renault	11	1:15.671	158.898
4	9	Mark Webber	Williams	23	1:15.680	158.879
5	2	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	58	1:15.919	158.379
6	4	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren	20	1:16.008	158.193
7	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	40	1:16.612	156.946
8	8	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	30	1:17.180	155.791
9	10	Nico Rosberg	Williams	43	1:17.227	155.696
10	12	Jenson Button	Honda	59	1:17.300	155.549
11	16	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	72	1:17.319	155.511
12	11	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	67	1:17.320	155.509
13	18	Tiago Monteiro	Midland	71	1:17.329	155.491
14	21	Scott Speed	Toro Rosso	77	1:17.481	155.186
15	7	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	72	1:17.540	155.068
16	19	Christijan Albers	Midland	77	1:17.603	154.942
17	20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Toro Rosso	75	1:17.660	154.828
18	17	Jacques Villeneuve	BMW Sauber	74	1:17.767	154.615
19	14	David Coulthard	Red Bull Racing	45	1:17.849	154.452
20	15	Christian Klien	Red Bull Racing	19	1:17.930	154.292
21	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri	39	1:18.793	152.602
22	23	Franck Montagny	Super Aguri	72	1:19.104	152.002

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

2006 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2006 Monaco Grand Prix.

2006 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Renault	64
2	Michael Schumacher	German	Ferrari	43
3	Giancarlo Fisichella	Italian	Renault	27
4	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	McLaren	27
5	Juan Pablo Montoya	Colombian	McLaren	23
6	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	20
7	Jenson Button	British	Honda	16
8	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Honda	13
9	Ralf Schumacher	German	Toyota	8
10	Nick Heidfeld	German	BMW Sauber	8
11	David Coulthard	British	Red Bull Racing	7
12	Mark Webber	Australian	Williams	6
13	Jacques Villeneuve	Canadian	BMW Sauber	6
14	Nico Rosberg	German	Williams	4
15	Christian Klien	Austrian	Red Bull Racing	1
16	Jarno Trulli	Italian	Toyota	0
17	Scott Speed	American	Toro Rosso	0
18	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Italian	Toro Rosso	0
19	Christijan Albers	Dutch	Midland	0
20	Tiago Monteiro	Portuguese	Midland	0
21	Takuma Sato	Japanese	Super Aguri	0
22	Yuji Ide	Japanese	Super Aguri	0
23	Franck Montagny	French	Super Aguri	0

2006 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Renault	91
2	Ferrari	63
3	McLaren	50
4	Honda	29
5	BMW Sauber	14
6	Williams	10
7	Toyota	8
8	Red Bull Racing	8
9	Toro Rosso	0
10	Midland	0
11	Super Aguri	0

2006 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2006 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	12 March
2	2006 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	19 March
3	2006 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	2 April
4	2006 San Marino Grand Prix	Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola	23 April
5	2006 European Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	7 May
6	2006 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	14 May
7	2006 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	28 May
8	2006 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	11 June
9	2006 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	25 June
10	2006 United States Grand Prix	Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis	2 July
11	2006 French Grand Prix	Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, Magny-Cours	16 July
12	2006 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	30 July
13	2006 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	6 August
14	2006 Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park, Istanbul	27 August
15	2006 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	10 September
16	2006 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	1 October
17	2006 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	8 October
18	2006 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	22 October