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The Most Open Race in Years

Jenson Button could change style for unpredictable Monaco grand prix

Sunday's showcase Monaco Grand Prix could be the most open in years, even if the formula one championship leader, Jenson Button, will still be very much the man to beat.

The British driver, a Monaco resident, has won four of the season's five races and will feel at home on the Mediterranean principality's tight and twisting streets. However the harbourside circuit, with its unforgiving barriers and blind corners, has made a mockery of predictions in the past, particularly if it rains, and Button has admitted he may have to change his style.

With overtaking next to impossible, qualifying will be crucial. Button's Brawn GP team mate, Rubens Barrichello, who celebrates his 37th birthday on Saturday before his 17th appearance in the race, is hungry for his first win since 2004.

In the slowest race on the calendar, McLaren's world champion Lewis Hamilton and the Ferrari pairing of Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen could also be dangerous while Renault's Fernando Alonso and Toyota's Jarno Trulli are past Monaco winners. Red Bull's Australian Mark Webber has always stood out while his German team mate, Sebastian Vettel, can add to the growing comparisons with retired compatriot Michael Schumacher.

Button, who crashed heavily on the circuit in practice in 2003 and had to miss the race, said: "It is very different and it is 'chuck all the downforce on' and don't worry about the drag and see what happens. Monaco is a circuit where I need to get the best out of the car and maybe change my style a bit from the first four races.

"When Red Bull have a clear shot at it and they do everything right, they are going to be competitive and we can't forget that... they are going to be on us in Monaco for sure."

Hamilton, last year's winner and second in his astonishing debut season, has been in love with Monaco since the days when Brazilian Ayrton Senna dominated with Lotus and McLaren.

"It's always a shock to my system when you get on that track and realise the speed you are doing with all these barriers around you," said Hamilton, whose title defence could be over by the summer break after he scored just nine points in the first five races compared to Button's 41. "It's very, very special to drive that circuit and I really hope that the car works better there, especially with the slower speed corners."

While 2007 champion Raikkonen won for McLaren in 2005, Brazilian Massa has been on the podium on his last two visits there and desperately needs a third to fire up Ferrari's worst ever start to a season.

"It would be great to go for a hat-trick this time," he said. "It will be very tough, but we'll give it our best shot. Thanks to the aerodynamic updates we introduced in Spain, the F60 is much improved. In terms of performance, we have made significant steps forward – but there is still much to do on the reliability front."

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