There was a deftly-timed article on the Formula One Feeder Series website this week where they ask two young drivers about the highs and lows of the Monaco Grand Prix. One of them was Alex Dunne, who is continuing his quest for motor racing stardom with a little less fanfare than one might expect.Dunne is back in the old Principality this weekend for the fourth round of the F2 season, the second-tier championship run parallel to F1. More specifically he’s also back to revisit the Sainte Dévote, the first of the famous 19 corners in Monaco’s iconic and notoriously tight street 3.3km circuit, which they’ve been racing at breakneck speeds in various incarnations since 1929. It’s another reminder too of the lofty heights Dunne is attempting to scale, and perhaps not fully appreciated. There is no more exclusive club in world sport than a seat in F1, especially without the hefty family wealth and backing so often required. No one ever said it would be easy either – exactly as it’s been proving for Dunne.Set among the most expensive real estate market in the world, the Monaco Grand Prix is still considered sporting royalty of the highest order. This time last year, when leading the F2 title race after victories on the Bahrain and Imola circuits, Dunne was involved in one of the craziest crashes at Sainte Dévote. No mean feat, given some of the spectacular mishaps there over the decades. Just ask Derek Daly, Ireland’s original trailblazer in F1, whose car cartwheeled on the first corner of the 1980 race and in five seconds of mayhem wiped out the entire Tyrrell racing team. Some say his F1 career never quite recovered.Monaco’s run from pole position on the grid to the first corner is the shortest on the racing circuit, just under 150m before drivers face the tight right-hand turn, also one of the few overtaking opportunities on the opening lap. It is, incidentally, named after the small chapel, hidden just behind the crash barriers, devoted to Sainte Dévote, a 4th century martyr and patron saint of Monaco.In Monaco last year, Dunne had just become the first Irish driver to secure an F2 pole position, and whether he was simply acting as a sort of martyr to his race convictions, a slow getaway meant he lost his lead to French rival Victor Martins. With that, Dunne attempted to immediately regain his position, on the inside, before they both quickly ran out of room, crashing into the barriers and triggering an 11-car pile-up that brought seven drivers’ races to an early end.Dunne’s nightmare wasn’t yet over. The race stewards deemed him wholly responsible, handing down a 10-place grid penalty for the following round in Barcelona. Such was the social media negativity that followed, the FIA later issued a general statement through their United Against Online Abuse campaign condemning harassment towards drivers and teams. Third-placed qualifier Alexander Dunne of Ireland and Rodin Motorsport (15) ahead of Round 4 Monaco of the Formula 2 Championship at Circuit de Monaco. Photo: James Sutton/ Formula 1/ Getty Images This is the sort of highly competitive motor racing world Dunne has quickly come to understand. Approaching the halfway point in last year’s title race, he was still in pole position, before losing ground in the later rounds and ending up fifth. Nothing less than an improvement on that this season will positively feed his F1 aspirations.The 20-year-old from Clonbullogue in Co Offaly probably has a little more learning to do. In the opening F2 round race in Melbourne, he crashed into his Rodin Motorsport team-mate Martinius Stenshorne after just two laps, damaging both cars and forcing both drivers off the track.[ Alex Dunne suffers nightmare start to Formula 2 campaign after crashing into team-mateOpens in new window ]Again, Dunne was fingered solely to blame, and worse still perhaps, was also heard on the race radio saying, “Yeah, I can see how this year is going to go, nice job ... He is never finishing in front of me ever again”.Never a dull moment with Dunne, it seems. He did later apologise, admitting things were said “in the heat of moment”, and have “no reflection on how I will approach the rest of the season”.The rescheduling of rounds after the postponement of the Bahrain and Jeddah circuits due to the war meant Miami and Montréal became stops two and three, and another turning point perhaps for Dunne. After losing control of his car after 10 laps of the feature race in Miami, he again came away without the wanted championship points. Pressure back on.So to Montréal two weeks ago, where despite the damp conditions (and another three-place penalty after qualifying) this time Dunne drove to near perfection, moving from 13th at one point, to finish second, just behind Stenshorne, making it a rare one-two for Rodin.Alexander Dunne on track during qualifying ahead of Round 4 Monaco of the Formula 2 Championship at Circuit de Monaco. Photo: Dom Gibbons/ Formula 1/ Getty Images He’s now up to seventh in the championship standings, 27 points behind Gabriele Minì from Italy, and a podium finish this weekend could close that gap further – Barcelona, Spielberg and Silverstone all following in quick succession over the next four weeks.“I think at this point for me, it kind of feels like a second kick-start to the year,” he says of his current position. “We’re only three rounds in, but in saying that, I think the first two rounds, we left a lot on the table. So not a whole lot of points to show for it, and I think at the moment, the only person to blame for that is myself.”[ Fast and furious rise of Alex Dunne: ‘I always wanted to be an F1 driver. I’m not that far away’Opens in new window ]Dunne isn’t the only Irish interest in Monaco this weekend, with Fionn McLaughlin, the 18-year-old from Magherafelt in Co Derry, also moving up to the F3 championship this season. Such is the increasingly young age profile of the top F1 drivers, there’s even less room for mistakes on the way up. At just 19, Kimi Antonelli is going for his fourth successive F1 win in a row in Monaco. Three seasons ago, in the Italian F4 Championship, Dunne finished a close second to the Italian, who is currently proving himself the best driver in the world by some distance.If that’s another reminder of the unpredictable nature of the sport, Dunne was also asked this week about what it ultimately takes to be quick around Monaco.“I think the simple answer is big balls.”All eyes this Sunday on Sainte Dévote so.