1996 Monaco Grand Prix
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 6 of 16 in the 1996 Formula One season | |||
 |
|||
| Date | 19 May 1996 | ||
| Official name | LIV Grand Prix Automobile de Monaco | ||
| Location | Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo | ||
| Course | Street circuit | ||
| Course length | 3.328 km (2.068 mi) | ||
| Distance | 75 laps, 249.600 km (155.094 mi) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 78 laps, 259.584 km (161.298 mi) | ||
| Weather | Overcast, mild, wet at first, drying later, light rain at finish | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Ferrari | ||
| Time | 1:20.356 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Jean Alesi
|
Benetton-Renault | |
| Time | 1:25.205 on lap 59 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Ligier-Mugen-Honda | ||
| Second | McLaren-Mercedes | ||
| Third | Sauber-Ford | ||
The 1996 Monaco Grand Prix (formally the LIV Grand Prix Automobile de Monaco) was a Formula One motor race held at Monaco on 19 May 1996. It was the sixth race of the 1996 Formula One season. The race was run in wet weather, causing significant attrition and setting a record for the fewest number of cars (3) to be running at the end of a Grand Prix race. Olivier Panis scored his sole career Formula One victory, earning the last ever Formula One victory for the Ligier team (and the first ever for engine manufacturer Mugen Motorsports) after switching to slick tyres in a well-timed pitstop. As of 2016[update], this is the most recent race won by a French driver.
Michael Schumacher had taken pole position but had caused minor controversy on his slowing down lap when he impeded Gerhard Berger right at the end of the session. Coming out of the tunnel Schumacher was cruising slowly, acknowledging the crowd, while Berger was on a hot lap. Schumacher tried to get out of Berger's way but the Austrian was going too fast and had to spin at high speed to avoid the Ferrari, entering the chicane backwards.
The Ligiers were 14th and 17th in qualifying, both below their expectations after the team had mis-firing issues, preventing a top six position.
Olivier Panis was fastest in the warm-up.Jacques Villeneuve was 18th after running a wet-setup in preparation for the expected rain.
Between the warm-up session and the race, heavy rain fell at the circuit. An additional 15-minute session was added to allow the drivers to get used to the changed conditions as it was the first time rain had fallen over the race weekend. The session took place at 13:15 CEST (GMT +2). Several drivers went off during the session, including Pedro Lamy, Pedro Diniz and Giancarlo Fisichella, but all continued. The only two drivers to escape with damage were Mika Häkkinen and Andrea Montermini, who suffered damage to their car.Jean Alesi suffered a puncture at the end of the session, but was able to return to the pitlane. Several drivers opted to skip the session. The Footwork team chose not to participate as they did not have any spare parts, and any crash would have marked the end of their weekend. Häkkinen was fastest, setting his time before his crash, with Alesi, Rubens Barrichello and Johnny Herbert behind. The two Williams cars were 7th and 8th, Villeneuve ahead of Damon Hill with Schumacher behind them in 9th.
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