Juan Pablo Montoya believes that the Monaco Grand Prix is the most prestigious race on the F1 calendar and the hardest leg of motorsport’s triple crown to win. The legendary event will receive a shake-up in 2025, introducing a new strategy factor to spice up proceedings. The Monaco GP was first held as a non-championship event in 1929 and was part of the inaugural F1 World Championship in 1950 when Juan Manuel Fangio won for Alfa Romeo around the iconic streets of Monte Carlo.

With the exception of the Covid-affected 2020 season, it has been part of the calendar every year since 1955. Monte Carlo’s legendary spectacle is also part of the Triple Crown of Motorsport, along with the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The achievement, which has been completed only by British racing icon Graham Hill, includes the most prestigious events in motor racing.

Former Williams and McLaren star Montoya is a two-time Indy500 winner and also tasted success at Monaco in 2003. He spoke exclusively about the achievement to Express Sport via Vision4Sport, where you can enquire about exclusive packages to the world's best sporting events.

Asked where Monaco ranks among the three races in terms of difficulty, Montoya said: “Number one. It's so special. There's so much meaning to it, especially in my time there was only one street race, so the tradition of it's so good. The atmosphere and the boats, and you just can't replicate it.”

In 2025, major changes are coming to Monaco’s F1 spectacle, adding further drama and intrigue. In an attempt to increase the chances of on-track action, the Grand Prix will now be a mandatory two-stop race in both wet and dry conditions.

This will throw a major spanner in the works for the strategy departments, and the rule change could throw up a surprise winner in 2025 as the teams adapt. This has provoked a mixed reaction in the paddock.

“I don’t know if it’s going to make a massive difference, but I don’t mind,” said reigning champion Max Verstappen. “If it’s one stop, two stops, 25 stops, it’s all fine. I mean, I do whatever is decided, right?

“It’s just one of these tracks where it’s very hard to pass, and, of course, the bigger we make the cars, the more difficult it is also to race. I felt like in 2016 or whatever, there was still a little bit of an opportunity [to overtake]. Now that’s, of course, gone. If the two pit stops help, I don’t know, but I guess we’ll find out, right?”