On Sunday, May 27, 2012, the Formula 1 Series will be traveling to Monaco to race in the Monaco Grand Prix. The drivers will take to the streets of Monte Carlo for the annual race. This year, though one driver set a track record, he did not get to start in the pole position. Instead, the driver had to serve a five position starting grid penalty.
Michael Schumacher put up a great time that beat the competition. However, during the Spanish Grand Prix, Schumacher had crashed into Bruno Senna. Formula 1 imposed a five position starting grid penalty for his actions and that penalty was to be served at the Monaco Grand Prix. Schumacher will now be starting in sixth. Instead, Mark Webber will now be starting in the top spot.
Sebastian Vettel was not happy with his performance in qualifying and opted to skip the final qualifying round. Though he felt the car was running better before certain adjustments were made, he did not believe that he was going to be able to compete with those ahead of him if he continued to run. Vettel will be starting in ninth place. He is hoping that his car will be more competitive during in the race than it was in qualifying.
It has not yet been determined what caused Sergio Perez to crash during qualifying. He was not able to get to the second round of qualifying and will not be participating in the race. It is not known if his crash was attributable to a mechanical problem or not. Perez had not been able to negotiate a turn and crashed into the wall. Despite another try at qualifying, he was not able to get enough speed to make it to the second round of qualifying.
It is too bad that Schumacher's penalty cost him a higher starting position, but that is the point of the penalty. Anything can happen during a Formula 1 race, as fans know too well. The Monaco Grand Prix is a generally a great race and only the best drivers will be able to successfully keep the pace. Despite the disappointing qualifying for certain drivers, those who made it in the race still might be able to catch up. If Schumacher is able to be as fast in the race as he was in qualifying, there is no reason why he could not take the victory.
Kristin Watt has been a fan of motorsports since she was a young girl and she watched NASCAR races with her mother. That love of NASCAR quickly evolved into a great enjoyment of many different motorsports including everything from local dirt track action to the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans to the adrenaline rush of the extreme motocross events. She has been following motorsports for many years.
