Due to the configuration of the Circuit de Monaco, with its low average speed and abundance of low-speed corners, allied to the low-grip nature of the public road surface, the teams all set their cars up to produce the maximum amount of downforce and mechanical grip possible. Benetton modified their car's suspensions to work better on the circuit's low-speed corners. The Minardi cars came equipped with a new titanium cast gearbox and new rear suspensions. McLaren brought an additional spare car to the event, with four in total being shared between Häkkinen and Coulthard.