Monaco Grand Prix 2006 & Kimmi Raikkonen

Summary: Last year's champion Kimmi Raikkonen expects to win once again the world's most famous street circuit trophy: The Monaco Grand Prix which will take place next Sunday May 28.

Last year's champion Kimmi Raikkonen expects to win once again the world's most famous street circuit trophy: The Monaco Grand Prix which will take place next Sunday May 28. Every F1 pilot wants to win the most famous race of the F1 calendar, since it is one of the slowest and hardest, due to its narrowness, and the fact that it is full of bumps and twists. Because of this, pilots can hardly over-take the other cars and any mistake can be critical. Consequently, pilots need to secure a good grid position. Spaniard Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher have ruled in the last Formula One races while Raikkonen and his team: McLaren- Mercedes haven't been that lucky. Between the years of 1984 and 1993 a McLaren car won eight out of nine years, with Ayrton Senna (Brazil) and Alain Prost (France) as pilots. Although from the last twelve races, the team McLaren- Mercedes has won only four times. The last victory was brought by Raikkonen a year ago. In general, speeds aren't high in the Monaco Grand Prix. Cars may reach a maximum of 290kph when they get to the famous tunnel, but the speed for a lap is less than 145kph. Therefore engineers must work on the low speed handling of the vehicle. The race's distance is 78 laps and the circuit length is 2.075 miles (3.340 kms). Monaco Grand Prix is always held on the next weekend after the Ascension Day.