June 3 (Reuters) - Monaco's local hero Charles Leclerc will hope to celebrate his new Ferrari deal on home territory this weekend by ending the Italian team's long winless wait and denying Mercedes teenager Kimi Antonelli a fifth successive victory.
The first race of the European season, after long-haul trips to Asia and North America, offers Ferrari a real chance of ending Mercedes' run of dominance and taking their first grand prix triumph since 2024.
"I think Ferrari is going to be the team to beat in Monaco and it's going to be very interesting how we do there," Antonelli, 19, said after winning in Montreal last month.
The Italian prodigy, Formula One's youngest ever championship leader, has finished first in the last four races and is 43 points clear of teammate George Russell.
But Leclerc has a special affinity with streets he has known since boyhood, watching in awe as Ferrari great Michael Schumacher skimmed the unforgiving metal barriers and roared past the moored super-yachts and shimmering sea.
The 28-year-old has been on pole position three times in the last five years, won in 2024 and was second last year -- decisively casting off talk of a Monaco 'jinx' resulting from earlier misfortunes in his career -- and is the 7/4 betting favourite.
Teammate and seven-times champion Lewis Hamilton is a three-times winner in Monaco, a double pole-sitter, and will also want in on the action after finishing second last month in Canada -- his best result since joining Ferrari last year.
PLAYING TO THE CAR'S STRENGTHS
Monaco should play to Ferrari's strengths and mask the weaknesses, with the car strong in corners and well-suited to a slow track where Saturday qualifying is key, grid position crucial and overtaking always tricky.
With few real straights and plenty of turns and twists, top speed and engine performance matter less in Monaco than elsewhere. Ferrari have also stood out this season for rapid getaways at the start.
"If you take away the power deficit, we're in the fight with these guys (Mercedes)," Hamilton said in Montreal, while Leclerc said he hoped the car would give him an advantage at home.
McLaren, who made their Formula One debut in Monaco 60 years ago, are hoping to celebrate their 1,000th race start -- a milestone so far achieved only by Ferrari -- with a win.
Red Bull's four-times world champion Max Verstappen can never be ruled out, and his 2021 win remains the fastest yet in Monaco with an average speed of 157.833kph, while Russell will be hoping his luck will turn after a series of misfortunes including an engine failure in Canada.
Monaco, still a glamour highlight of the calendar however anachronistic it may be for some, kicks off a gruelling run of six races in eight weeks.
This year's cars are lighter, narrower and more nimble which could also liven up the racing, even if there are also more cars on track this year with the arrival of Cadillac as 11th team.
The General Motors-backed team will be making their Monaco debut and so too will sole rookie Arvid Lindblad at Red Bull-owned Racing Bulls, although he is no stranger to the layout from racing in junior series.
"Monaco is the first proper street circuit (of the season). It's always special driving at Monaco, so to have my first experience of an F1 car there will be very cool," said the Briton.
A mandatory two-pitstop rule that was in force last year, and was widely panned afterwards, has been ditched and the race is likely to be a one-stop for most.
(Reporting by Alan BaldwinEditing by Christian Radnedge)
