Up to four teams could be in with a chance of victory at the forthcoming grand prix at Monte Carlo, according to the pre-race rhetoric.
Championship leader Ferrari is still believed to possess at least marginally the quickest car of the 2008 field, but last year on the Principality’s streets, the Italian team struggled to keep up with McLaren.
BMW-Sauber, meanwhile, had a slightly lacklustre Istanbul outing, but the team’s star driver Robert Kubica thinks the team’s F1.08 will perform best on slow tracks like Monaco.
Monaco can also provide an opportunity for teams like Renault. Not only will the French squad’s current horse power deficit be less obvious on the ultra high downforce circuit, the race also tempts ambitious teams’ strategists to go aggressive in qualifying to achieve an all-important higher grid position.
“I think that not only McLaren will be strong (in Monaco), I am expecting BMW of course, and Renault,” Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali told reporters before leaving Turkey last Sunday.