Pirelli bows to F1 pressure with ‘new range’ to debut in Canada

Pirelli has announced that it will provide Formula One with a “new range” of tyres, starting at the Canadian Grand Prix on 7-9 June. The new tyres are described as a cross between the 2012 and 2013 models, and Pirelli has restated its hope to provide tyres that allow teams to make “two to three” pit stops per race. The change has followed mounting pressure from certain teams, the most prominent being Championship-leading Red Bull. Most recently Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz added his dissenting voice to team principal, Christian Horner in claiming that F1 is “nothing to do with racing any more”. His comments followed the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona, where the harsher conditions led to many drivers taking four pit stops. The revised construction of the new tyres is designed to dial back the focus on short-term performance in order to increase reliability. The current P Zero F1 range will make its final appearance at the Monaco Grand Prix on 24-26 May.

Pirelli Motorsport director Paul Hembery made a lengthy statement in announcing the change: “Our aim is to provide the teams with a new range which mixes the stability of the 2012 tyres and the performance of the current ones. As a company, we have always moved quickly to make improvements where we see them to be necessary. After evaluating data from the first few races this year, we’ve decided to introduce a further evolution as it became clear at the Spanish Grand Prix that the number of pit stops was too high. The Spanish Grand Prix was won with four pit stops, which has only happened once before in our history. These changes will also mean that the tyres are not worked quite as hard, reducing the number of pit stops.

“With limited testing time, it’s clear now that our original 2013 tyre range was probably too performance-orientated for the current regulations. However, having identified this issue, we’re determined to rapidly resolve it. It’s worth underlining that the current regulations for winter tests limit the opportunity to test the tyres under the same conditions as the race season because of the lower temperature and restricted time. The teams are of the same opinion as we are in wanting longer testing times and different locations for the next tests. We developed the 2013 tyres on the basis of careful simulations that were, however, not sufficient, taking into account the improved speed of cars (up to three seconds per lap). 

“We’ve also taken this step to avoid the delaminations that were caused by track debris. It’s important to point out that these delaminations, which occur when the tread comes off, do not compromise the safety of the tyres as the core structure of the tyre is not affected in any way, helping drivers to complete the lap and to change the damaged tyres safely. These delaminations were due to damage from debris that overheated the tread.   We’d like to thank all the teams for their continued and extremely valued support as we worked with them to identify the correct compromise between the pure speed that makes us the world leader in the Ultra High Performance sector and a global spectacle that is easy for Formula One fans to follow.”

Related news:

• ‘We don’t make concessions to 1 or 2 teams’ – Paul Hembery interviewed
• ‘Too many’ pit stops at Spanish Grand Prix – Pirelli