It was another magical Monaco Grand Prix weekend for round six of the 2026 Formula 1 season, thanks to a riveting Qualifying, a chaotic race and an electric atmosphere in the Principality. The crowd provided the energy all weekend long, with fans unsure where to look amidst the penalties and incidents on the streets of Monte Carlo.
On the track, Championship leader Kimi Antonelli became the youngest driver to win in Monaco, claiming his first Grand Slam and his fifth win in a row. Lewis Hamilton and Isack Hadjar rounded out the podium in a wild race that saw mechanical issues for Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, along with a costly penalty for George Russell. However, those weren’t the only stories from the Monaco Grand Prix weekend – so here are some off-track moments you may have missed…
McLaren 1000
It was also a landmark weekend for McLaren, who became only the second team in F1 history to reach 1000 Grand Prix starts. A milestone that impressive deserved a whole weekend of celebrations, and that’s exactly what the Woking team delivered. On Friday, the Monaco straight was filled with many of McLaren’s race winners, past and present. The current pair of Norris and Oscar Piastri were joined by Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, John Watson, Mika Hakkinen, Emerson Fittipaldi, Juan Pablo Montoya, Heikki Kovalainen, and David Coulthard – some line-up!
Two-time World Champion Hakkinen had the privilege of driving McLaren’s first-ever car – the M2B. Bruce McLaren’s 1966 car drew plenty of attention in the pit lane, thanks to the extreme noise coming from the old V8 engine, but it was a joy to see the classic car going around the streets of Monaco yet again.
The team marked the occasion with a special orange-and-black livery for both Monaco and Barcelona – released 60 years on from their debut in the Principality, whilst some of the best moments from their Championship victories are dotted all over the design. Of course, the drivers needed to look the part too, with Norris and Piastri wearing fresh black race suits, along with special edition helmets featuring another eye-catching LEGO collaboration.
Footballing fever
With the World Cup starting on Thursday, the drivers were clearly in the mood for a kickabout throughout Monaco race week. Firstly, Pierre Gasly, Carlos Sainz and Hadjar took to the pitch to play in the Racing Stars Football Cup, a charity football game taking place in the Stade Louis II. The trio shared the pitch with legends like Clarence Seedorf and Ronaldinho, and there was some great link-up between the three drivers – a paddock football team may be in order…
Elsewhere, Sainz was back in his football boots to do some challenges with AS Monaco star Ansu Fati at their training ground – the Spaniard yet again proving himself as one of the best all-round sportsmen on the grid!
Water-soaked celebrations
After getting a champagne soaking from Hamilton and Toto Wolff on the podium, Antonelli completed the Monaco tradition by jumping into the harbour – quickly handing the trophy to the team. He won’t want to lose that one in a hurry!
Antonelli wasn’t the only one taking a plunge – a double career-best finish for Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad was certainly cause for celebration. The Racing Bulls pair launched themselves into the marina after a masterful fifth and sixth place – lovely synchronisation, guys!
Emotions for the Antonellis
An Italian hasn’t won at Monaco since Antonelli was born, but the 19-year-old continues to showcase what an incredible talent he is, winning in Monte Carlo to extend his title lead. It was only right that his father, Marco, was first up to congratulate him, as the pair embraced with an emotional hug, before Marco gave the youngster the Italian flag to hold up proudly on the rostrum. It just keeps getting better for Antonelli – all eyes will be on the Italian when we go to Monza later this year for a win that could even top this one…
Dramatic drone show
The fans at Monaco are always treated to special events, activations and on-the-limit racing, but on Friday evening, the Principality witnessed something rather unique. To celebrate the 10-year extension of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, the Monaco night sky was filled with 3,050 drones for a 10-minute show that had everyone mesmerised. The drones showcased all 11 teams, along with recreations of some of Monaco’s most famous sights – a stunning way to kick off the weekend.
Monaco marathon man
Monaco is an inspiring place to be over Grand Prix weekend, but perhaps no more so than Chris, who ran around 1000km from his home in Germany to the Principality in time for the Grand Prix.
This mammoth feat caught the attention of fellow German Nico Hulkenberg, who was so impressed that he gifted Chris paddock passes as well as weekend tickets to the racing, and of course, stopped for a chat in the pit lane.
After a long three weeks on the road, it’s safe to say the special welcome was pretty well deserved!
Commuting in style
As the second smallest country in the world, you would think the commute for the drivers to the track would be nice and easy. However, with the streets closed all over the Principality, it can be quite tricky to get to the paddock all weekend. Naturally, the solution for the grid involves water – most of the drivers arrive for racing duties on small boats, pulling up to the paddock via the marina. We even saw Piastri and Alex Albon make use of some mopeds to get from their Monaco homes – a peculiar journey that won’t be repeated for the rest of the calendar.
Countless celebs
Monaco attracts the very biggest names from around the world, as celebrities pour into the Principality to watch the country’s showcase event – but this year might have been the most stacked guest list we’ve seen. Former NBA MVP and Greek superstar basketball player Giannis Antetokounmpo was on flag waving duty – and he was a natural!
Sports stars are always keen to watch the Grand Prix, with three-time Olympic champion freestyle skier Eileen Gu and legendary alpine skier Lindsey Vonn both joining Red Bull in the garage this weekend. Snowboarders Scotty James and Shaun White were also in attendance, along with footballers Paul Pogba, Ilkay Gundogan, Sandro Tonali, Olivier Giroud, Morgan Gibbs-White, Curtis Jones, Mats Hummels, Lukas Podolski, and Mario Gotze.
Some of the silver screen’s big names were in the paddock too, with F1 fan Patrick Dempsey returning to Monaco along with Wicked actress Cynthia Erivo, Cadillac partner Terry Crews, Olivia Wilde, Karen Gillen, Noah Schnapp, Jung Ho-Yeon, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas.
Musicians in Monaco just makes sense – we spotted Coachella headliner Karol G, rappers Dave and Tion Wayne and drummer Dom Howard in the pit lane for Sunday’s race. And finally, the paddock was abuzz with the arrival of Kim and Khloe Kardashian for Qualifying and the Grand Prix – how many people did you notice at the street track?
