Few races on the calendar carry the prestige and the romance of the Monaco Grand Prix. Held on the narrow streets of the Principality since 1929, the Circuit de Monaco winds through tunnels, past harbours, and along cliffsides in a way that no other circuit on the calendar can match.<\/p>\n
The racing alone has given fans memories to last a lifetime, from legendary wet-weather drives to dramatic final laps with multiple lead changes. But Monaco also has something of a habit for producing moments away from the racing that stay with us for just as long.<\/p>\n
Here are 11 viral off-track moments from Monaco that we won\u2019t be forgetting any time soon…<\/p>\n
Kimi Raikkonen\u2019s early exit to his yacht in 2006<\/p>\n
When Kimi Raikkonen<\/a> retired from the Monaco Grand Prix in 2006 with an exhaust issue during the opening laps, it was a bitter blow \u2013 especially considering his epic pole-to-flag win the year before.<\/p>\n But if he was disappointed, he certainly didn\u2019t show it. Whilst most drivers in his position trudge back to the paddock, ruminating on what went wrong, Raikkonen had a better plan \u2013 within 15 minutes of retiring, he was spotted watching the remainder of the race from his yacht in the harbour. The Iceman was utterly unbothered as ever \u2013 it\u2019s Monaco, after all!<\/p>\n Daniel Ricciardo\u2019s divine dive in 2018<\/p>\n Two years after a botched pit stop cruelly robbed him of a Monaco victory, Daniel Ricciardo qualified on pole yet again \u2013 but history threatened to repeat itself when, just 28 laps, an MGU-K failure left him with a loss of power. The Australian had no other choice but to keep driving the wheels off the car and hope for the best.<\/p>\n Against all odds, he held on to win by a remarkable seven seconds, producing an unforgettable redemption story. But Ricciardo’s celebration itself become one of the most famous. Surrounded by his team and a swarm of media, Ricciardo stepped to the edge of the pool and executed the most elegant swallow dive we\u2019ve ever seen \u2013 an image forever etched into our memories.<\/p>\n Light as a feather as his demons of 2016 were finally put to rest, we give that dive a 10 out of 10 every time.<\/p>\n Unhinged radio messages from Button in 2017<\/p>\n When Fernando Alonso<\/a> chose to race at the 2017 Indianapolis 500 rather than Monaco, McLaren<\/a> called on previous Principality-winner Jenson Button<\/a> to step in \u2013 coaxing him out of retirement for one final appearance around the iconic track. Ahead of the race, Alonso made a surprise radio in from across the Atlantic to wish his substitute well. He also had a simple request: \u201cTake care of my car\u201d.<\/p>\n A simple enough ask, but Button\u2019s response was entirely unhinged. \u201cI’m going to pee in your seat,” he replied \u2013 which quickly became a fan favourite moment of the whole race weekend.<\/p>\n Whether or not he followed through on the threat, we may never know, as Button retired after a collision with Pascal Wehrlein. Not quite the send-off the 2009 World Champion deserved, but we reckon the radio exchange alone was worth the trip!<\/p>\n Home hero Leclerc in 2024<\/p>\n After years of heartache, near misses and agonising retirements, Charles Leclerc<\/a> finally won his home Grand Prix in 2024 \u2013 and the release of emotion was decades in the making. The final lap commentary raised goosebumps, the team radio as he crossed the line was tear-jerking, and the celebrations that followed were entirely worthy of the wait.<\/p>\n After the podium, Leclerc made his way to the harbour \u2013 where he wasted little time in pushing team boss Fred Vasseur into the water before diving after him. Vasseur, to his credit, didn’t look too unhappy about it. As for Leclerc, he hit the water with all the grace you’d expect from someone who had just completed 78 laps of one of the world\u2019s toughest circuits and the weight of a lifetime’s ambition finally off his shoulders.<\/p>\n It is an image that will stay with F1 fans for a very long time.<\/p>\n Diamond heist of 2004<\/p>\n To promote the release of Ocean’s Twelve at the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix, Jaguar fitted a $250,000 diamond to the nose cone of each of their cars. It was a pretty neat piece of Hollywood cross-promotion… until Christian Klien’s Jaguar hit the wall barely a lap into the Grand Prix, and the diamond vanished.<\/p>\n Despite extensive searching, it was never recovered \u2013 and to this day, nobody knows quite what happened to it. Ocean’s Twelve could not have written it better!<\/p>\n Champagne showers for Rosberg in 2019<\/p>\n When Lewis Hamilton<\/a> won the 2019 Monaco Grand Prix \u2013 his third victory in the Principality \u2013 the celebrations didn\u2019t quite stop at the podium. With his champagne bottle still in hand, Hamilton made a beeline for the grid where the VIP guests and media were gathered, and spotted his former team mate and rival Nico Rosberg<\/a> in the crowd…<\/p>\n What followed seemed pretty inevitable given their relationship \u2013 a chase around the grid and a thorough champagne soaking, delivered with great enthusiasm on Hamilton\u2019s part. It left Rosberg\u2019s elegant cream suit considerably less pristine than perhaps he would have liked, but it was a fitting way for Hamilton to celebrate equalling Rosberg\u2019s win total at Monaco!<\/p>\n Button running to the podium 2009<\/p>\n After taking victory at the 2009 Monaco Grand Prix, Button clearly still had some adrenaline to burn. A talented triathlete and runner, Button set off on foot along the circuit in what became a lap of honour after parking his Brawn in the wrong place. He high-fived marshals as he went while soaking in every moment of winning one of the most prestigious races in the world.<\/p>\n Button was never one to turn down an opportunity to get moving, and even the gruelling Grand Prix wasn\u2019t an excuse to not get the training in. But above all, it was pure, unbridled joy from a driver who was \u2013 at that point anyway \u2013 firmly on course for the World Championship, and he looked on top of the world here!<\/p>\n Albon and Russell\u2019s dinner date in 2025<\/p>\n George Russell<\/a> had plenty to ruminate over after a frustrating 2025 Monaco Grand Prix, having spent much of the race stuck behind the Williams<\/a> duo of Carlos Sainz<\/a> and Alex Albon<\/a>. So stuck, in fact, that his patience eventually ran out \u2013 skipping the Nouvelle Chicane to pass Albon and refusing to hand the position back despite knowing he\u2019d receive a penalty.<\/p>\n When asked about it afterwards, Russell eventually had a smile on his face: “I’m having dinner with Alex tonight, so he’s going to get the bill.” True to his word, the pair were spotted out later that evening \u2013 and Albon did indeed pick up the tab.<\/p>\n The running race to the pits in 2000<\/p>\n The 2000 Monaco Grand Prix produced a gloriously chaotic moment barely one lap into the race. A collision between Pedro de la Rosa and Button at the Loews hairpin on the opening lap sent the Spaniard into a spin, triggering a six-vehicle car park behind them.<\/p>\n Luckily for the drivers, this was an era when teams kept spare cars in the garage, and the regulations allowed the stranded drivers to restart in them on the grid \u2013 but only if they made it back to the pits within ten minutes of the red flag being waved…<\/p>\n Cue one of the most peculiar spectacles in Monaco history \u2013 the drivers all sprinting back through the streets of the Principality \u2013 helmets and all \u2013 with the commentators providing an enthusiastic running commentary on overtakes and road crossings.<\/p>\n Diniz won the footrace and made it back in time to start from the grid rather than the pit lane \u2013 although that didn\u2019t seem to be a good omen for the Brazilian as he crashed at Sainte Devote on Lap 31. It was a chaotic start to his race and an equally chaotic end \u2013 Monaco at its wildest.<\/p>\n Rosberg\u2019s demonstration in 2018<\/p>\n Over the 2018 race weekend, the fans in Monaco were treated to a rather special demonstration \u2013 Keke<\/a> and Nico Rosberg took to the circuit together in their respective championship-winning cars \u2013 the Williams FW08 and the Mercedes<\/a> F1 W07 Hybrid. One of only two World Championship-winning father-and-son pairings, the duo shared the streets around a track that has seen victories for both of them.<\/p>\n It seems their competitive instincts were kept firmly in check, but the sight of the pair out on track together made for one of the most wholesome moments of the season \u2013 and one we\u2019ll certainly never forget.<\/p>\n Flying laps in 2023<\/p>\n When Hamilton hit the wall at Mirabeau during FP3 in 2023, the resulting red flag brought out the crane to collect his Mercedes. But with that came one of the most talked-about moments of the entire weekend.<\/p>\n As his vehicle was lifted high above the circuit, it gave every team in the paddock an unexpected \u2013 and rather generous \u2013 view of the floor of his car. Safe to say the footage was being studied very closely in most of the garages that weekend.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Few races on the calendar carry the prestige and the romance of the Monaco Grand Prix. 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