"Dad gave me a taste for this exercise, which I approached like driving": meeting with Adrien Tambay, C+ consultant for the Monaco Grand Prix

We found him this Thursday morning on Quai Antoine-1er, near the Rascasse hairpin bend. Another circuit, another role for Adrien Tambay, who, at 34, will experience his first Monaco Grand Prix this weekend as a consultant for the Canal+ dream team. Back to the future...

Adrien, do you remember the first time you set foot in the Monaco Grand Prix?

The very first one, it's hard to date it precisely. When I was a kid, we never missed an edition. There are tons of memories jostling around in my mind. Including this one, here... (He smiles). Pff, I don't know if I can tell you. Okay, let's go, there must be a statute of limitations. It was in 2007, the year I started racing in single-seaters. While strolling around the pit lane with my father, we met Helmut Marko(1). During the conversation, my first positive results in Formula BMW were discussed, pole positions, podiums. And when Doctor Marko told us he would keep an eye on me, Dad could think of nothing better than to reply: "I hope it's the right one (eye, editor's note)..." There, his face remained impassive but he must have laughed bitterly inwardly. Needless to say, he never came back to me. I prefer to think it's because of this slightly borderline touch of humor...

Four years later, in 2011, you discovered the Monaco circuit at the wheel of a Formula Renault 3.5...

My only racing weekend here. That's the real memory! The strongest. I'm twenty years old, I'm discovering the track but also the car thanks to a Monegasque sponsor who is financing this baptism of fire. While the Pons Racing team hadn't yet scored a single point, I picked up a few right away (7th) by finishing ahead of my teammate. I battled with Jean-Eric Vergne who was fighting for the title at the time. A fabulous experience! Like the Monte-Carlo Rally contested the same year , by the way (18th in a DS3 R3T)! Road or track, behind the wheel, you feel like you're experiencing something exceptional. You realize how lucky you are. This circuit makes me want to drive, to race, every day. If I'm ever offered a "wild-card" (invitation) for the Porsche Supercup, I won't say no, believe me!

One day in 2017, between two races, you got involved in the media world. Could we say that you're also following in your father's footsteps?

Yes, it's impossible to explain it any other way. I spent so much time sitting right next to Jean-Luc Roy and Dad in the cockpit. Especially during the period of the Canal Satellite group's pay-TV channel Kiosque, where they commentated on the Grands Prix from Paris (from 1997 to 2002). I experienced it with them, from the inside, every qualifying session, every race, or almost. Dad gave me a taste for this exercise, which I approached like driving, with the same concern for doing a good job, being precise, perfectionist...

Since you're drawing a parallel between steering wheel and microphone, are the adrenaline rushes comparable?

Without going so far as to say that the pressure of live broadcasts is as strong, you feel the same knot in your stomach before an operation. The same little thing, the same emotional state... The fear of having nothing to say grips you when there's no reason not to have anything to say! All of this pushes you to be fully focused, fully lucid. Canal+ is a big company. The channel for motorsports, for Formula 1. A lot of people are watching you. Experts. So there's an obligation to perform. Not much room for error. Like a driver. Or a surgeon who saves lives!

After the accelerated apprenticeship on RMC and BFM, when and how did you join the Canal+ team?

In fact, the Canal+ adventure began even earlier. Very early on, as soon as they became Grand Prix broadcasters. In 2013 or 2014, while I was racing across the Rhine on the DTM championship circuits as an Audi driver, I was one of their first consultants for GP2 (formerly Formula 2) races, alongside Stéphane Genti. Last year, the opportunity to join the F1 team arose, for five GPs. This season, we're shifting into high gear. My roadmap includes nine events. Eight on-site, including the three now back-to-back: Imola, Monaco, Barcelona.

In Shanghai, you commentated on the Chinese Grand Prix alongside Julien Fébreau. Were you happy with this first time?

Oh yes! Julien is the Rolls Royce of commentary. He knows his job so well, he's so passionate... He knows how far to go with his consultant, whoever he is, Jacques (Villeneuve), Romain (Grosjean), Franck (Montagny), me... Strangely, I felt a lot less stress and a lot more fun than in front of the camera in the paddock or in the pit lane. Mind you, I like both jobs. But in my opinion, the added value of the consultant is measured above all in the exercise of live commentary. There, in addition to analysis and popularization, you have to anticipate what's going to happen, explain the different possible strategies. In real time!

Monaco, is it a special turn?

A special weekend, yes. Since the French Grand Prix has unfortunately been cancelled, for Canal+, it's their home race. The channel is bringing out the big guns: more journalists, more consultants, a superb lineup right on the water, between the paddock and the track. Enough to cover the event as it should be...

The essential qualities of a good consultant, in two or three words?

Objectivity, perspective... (He reflects) Moderation, too, even if some colleagues fond of clear opinions will disagree. And frankness, of course. Sorry, that makes four!

1. During his racing career, the Austrian, who became one of the leaders of the Red Bull team, where he was responsible for the young drivers' program, lost an eye in an accident during the 1972 French Grand Prix, on the Charade circuit.