In 2021, Formula 1 will bid farewell to 13-inch rims and tyres with chubby sidewalls, with the switch to an 18-inch dimension taking place that season. The onus falls upon exclusive tyre supplier Pirelli to develop rubber for the 2021 F1 cars, and Pirelli says its development will be greatly aided by the adoption of the 18-inch tyre size in ‘feeder’ series Formula 2 from 2020.
Pirelli will remain global tyre partner of the FIA Formula One World Championship until the end of the 2023 season after extending its current contract – which lasts until the end of the 2019 season – for a further four years. Pirelli notes that the agreement to extend the partnership was “completed in a short timeframe” on the back of the “successful partnership over recent years.”
Depending on how you look at it, Pirelli has either simplified its F1 tyre colour coding for 2019 or made it more complicated. Only three P Zero colours will be seen at each race next year. These will always be the same – white, yellow and red – and denote the hard, medium and soft tyre choices at every Grand Prix. But the use of just three colours doesn’t mean Pirelli will only offer three tyre compounds.
It’s official: Hankook Tire has submitted a tender for Formula 1 tyre supply between 2020 and 2023. In response to questions from within our publishing group, Felix Kinzer, director of corporate communications at Hankook Tire Europe, confirmed that the company submitted an application prior to the 31 August deadline.
During last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, Jead Todt disclosed that a second tyre maker has expressed interest in becoming exclusive Formula 1 tyre supplier for the 2020 to 2023 seasons. He didn’t reveal the company’s name – he claimed not to have the information at hand – however we confirmed it wasn’t Michelin.
Pirelli has presented new solutions and concepts as part of its Cyber Tyre development programme for more than a decade now. At last year’s Geneva Motor Show, the tyre maker introduced the Connesso system, a sensor-based solution that provides motorists with real-time tyre pressure and temperature data, as well as information about use and maintenance. Yet Cyber Tyre has only focused on road-going solutions so far – a further step for Pirelli would be to introduce its technology into Formula 1.
The FIA is currently seeking tenders for tyre supply to the Formula One World Championship between 2020 and 2023. As expected, talk in motorsport circles has returned to the possibility of Michelin throwing its hat into the ring. The French tyre maker is open to the prospect of acting as sole tyre supplier, as requested by the FIA tender, provided that “a technical challenge was involved.” Yet other FIA conditions continue to place stumbling blocks in the way of a Michelin return.
Cooper Tire Europe will host Formula One star and ultra-high performance ambassador, David Coulthard, and rallycross world champion Petter Solberg alongside its full range of products at The Tire Cologne exhibition (29 May-1 June).
Pirelli began an eighth season as Formula 1 tyre supplier at the Australian Grand Prix over the weekend, and it opines that pit stop strategy was “central” to the race’s outcome.
Pirelli showcased the broad variety of its global motorsport programme from the largest stand it has ever presented at Autosport International at the 2018 edition of the show. Pirelli’s head of car racing Mario Isola, who heads up the company’s Formula One programme, visited the show along with around 100,000 other visitors over the course of the weekend.
Testing of Pirelli’s 2018 Formula 1 tyres took place at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina circuit over a two-day period this week, and following the conclusion of proceedings the tyre maker is proud to report that four-time and current champion Lewis Hamilton has declared the new PZero Pink hypersoft tyre the “best tyre Pirelli has ever made.”
Yesterday’s Mexican Grand Prix delivered Lewis Hamilton his fourth drivers’ title, not to mention a moment of bated breath in the very first round as Hamilton’s Mercedes made contact with the Ferrari of closest title contender Sebastian Vettel. The collision, comments Pirelli, added an extra tactical element to the race, as both protagonists were forced to deviate from the expected one-stop strategy.
Pirelli has continued its late-season trend of introducing softer Formula One compounds than in 2016 with its selection for the Japanese grand prix at Suzuka. Mario Isola, head of car racing, says that “this is particularly pertinent” at Suzuka, “as it’s one of the most challenging tracks for tyres of the entire year, with a very big emphasis on lateral loads that can cause thermal degradation if the tyres are not properly managed.
While all the frontrunners at the final Malaysian Grand Prix used a similar single-stop tyre strategy, changing from Pirelli P Zero Red supersoft to Yellow soft tyres, Sebastian Vettel’s Ferrari reversed the order to support his bid for points from the back of the grid. The German chose to start the race on the soft tyres to try and gain track position, switching to the faster supersoft tyres on the same lap that Red Bull’s Max Verstappen pitted from the lead to change from supersoft to soft. Verstappen won the race from the second row of the grid.
The first ever wet Singapore Grand Prix saw the top six starting on Pirelli’s Cinturato Green intermediate tyre and a mixture of Cinturato Blue wets and intermediates further down the grid. the early safety car periods provided the opportunity for some drivers to change from wet to intermediate tyres, while Daniel Ricciardo, who had started on intermediates, opted to change to a fresh set of intermediates. The Red Bull driver finished the grand prix second, behind the Mercedes of race winner Lewis Hamilton.
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