Just two weeks after Canada, F1 was back in Monaco and I was ready for the most beautiful race weekend of the year. Some people call Monaco boring because overtaking is almost impossible, but come on… watching these cars squeeze between those walls still makes me nervous from my sofa. Where else does an F1 weekend look like a yacht show, fashion show and motor race happening together?
Monaco being Monaco, the paddock was full of celebrities, but Kim and Khloé Kardashian created the biggest discussion. Martin Brundle tried to speak with them during his famous grid walk, and they appeared to completely ignore him. Sorry, but you can’t come onto an F1 grid and ignore Martin Brundle. He is part of the race weekend. Even if you don’t want an interview, at least acknowledge the legend.
Kim was there to support Hamilton, and Monaco also became the weekend when Lewis finally spoke publicly about their relationship. He said it was amazing having her support and that she does it for him every day. So Hamilton finished second and quietly made his relationship public during the same weekend. Monaco really does have everything.
Qualifying made me excited because Kimi took pole with Max only 0.043 seconds behind him. My favourite driver on the front row at Monaco? Yes please. I genuinely thought Max could finally stop Kimi’s winning run.
Then the lights went out and Max didn’t move.
His car went into anti-stall, everyone passed him and Red Bull retired it after the first lap. Seriously? I waited all weekend to watch Max fight for the Monaco win and his race finished before I had properly settled down.
Kimi controlled the race while Monaco created chaos behind him. Russell collected penalties, Norris lost power and Stroll crashed at the final corner. Then Leclerc suffered a brake problem and hit the same wall after the restart. Crashing out of your home race while fighting for a podium must hurt badly. His radio message said everything: “I won’t even take the blame.”
The Safety Car and red flag removed Kimi’s huge lead, but he handled both restarts perfectly and won his fifth race in a row. Seeing him celebrate with his father and then jump into the Monaco harbour was a lovely moment.
But wait, Kimi’s Monaco story wasn’t finished.
After the podium, Kim Kardashian picked up the towel meant for race winner Kimi and used it before walking away with it. Kimi’s response was brilliant. Mercedes made a funny reel where he kept asking everyone, “Have you seen my towel?” She later sent him a personalised replacement with “To Kimi from Kim” written on it.
Kimi won Monaco, but somehow Kim still left with part of the prize.
I rate the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix a solid A2W 8/10. Max disappearing at the start ruined my hopes, but crashes, penalties, celebrity drama and the missing towel kept Monaco entertaining long after the race finished.
I came for Max, watched Kimi win and stayed to find out who stole the towel.
aKi Malik
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