The whole track is a mammoth challenge because the barriers are only a split second away. At full speed a Formula one car can travel the length of an Olympic swimming pool in half a second, and even though the cars travel slowly at Monaco they still pack a punch. If the driver loses concentration for just as long as it takes him to blink he will end up in the wall. Perhaps the biggest challenge for drivers is keeping focus for the full length of the race, which is extremely difficult because Monaco is the longest hardest slog of the season. There are no straights for the drivers to relax on and they always have to be paying attention to everything around them. That is of course presuming they have made it through the first corner unscathed. The start at Monaco is the most dangerous of anywhere because there is simply no space to manoeuvre. All it takes is someone to get a little over confident and a multiple pile up will ensue. Two corners in particular offer a unique challenge. The section around Casino Square is tricky because not only do the drivers change direction but they also change elevation over a crest. The first of those corners is blind and the exit is also off camber making this one of the trickiest bends in F1. The car will understeer into the first left hander but will oversteer like mad on the exit of the right hander. A driver has to be in total control of his machine. The other supreme challenge at Monaco is the Tabac corner because speed through there is totally dependent on how close a driver can get to the barriers. The quickest way though is to be an inch away on the entry, apex, and exit. The closer a driver can go the quicker he can take the corner, and it is usually where someone comes unstuck in qualifying. Tabac is all about precision and bravery, a combination rarely seen in modern F1.
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