‘Robust’ Pirelli for British GP

Pirelli plans to introduce a new Formula 1 tyre construction from this month’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone in the wake of the recent Azerbaijan GP failures.

The teams will be asked to test the new construction in free practice tomorrow (Friday) for the Austrian GP before final approval is given after the high-profile failures for Lance Stroll and Max Verstappen in Baku.

In response, Pirelli increased its monitoring of the pressures with which cars take the start, following accusations that some teams were allowing them to fall during the race.

The change of construction was discussed last Friday afternoon at the Styrian GP at a meeting of team bosses chaired by F1 sporting chief Ross Brawn, with Pirelli’s Mario Isola explaining the thinking behind the change. It is understood that the C4 will be used to trial the new construction at the Red Bull Ring, as the stock of the harder C1, C2 and C3 tyres will be required for Silverstone.

The Italian company asked the FIA and F1 if it could use a more robust construction, with the same profile as the current tyres but a stiffer sidewall. The change can be mandated on safety grounds. Silverstone is traditionally hard on tyres due to its high speeds and high loadings, and there have been failures in the past (including Lewis Hamilton in 2020, below).

“This decision has been taken in addition to the recently issued technical directive and the latest starting parameters prescribed by Pirelli, in light of the fact that it is not currently possible to monitor running conditions in real time,” said Pirelli. “This will remain the case until next year, when standard Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) sensors will be introduced across all teams.”