Pirelli to offer softer tyres in 2018
Pirelli knows what its priorities are for its F1 product range next season: to offer softer compounds than this year. Without going too far, however, to avoid falling back into past mistakes.
If Mario Isola, Pirelli’s head of competition, made it known during the Monaco weekend that developing a compound dedicated to the Principality was not a priority, he also stated that the 2018 priorities had already been laid out. It has therefore already been decided to be one grade softer than this year.
But the leader doesn’t want to venture into new extremes: « We are currently a bit too harsh. So we will be a notch more gentle to have a wider range. For one notch, I agree. But some are already demanding two notches. There, I say Let’s wait! There will be enormous progress on cars and therefore much more pressure on tires. »
In order to fuel discussions and show attentiveness to its customers, the exclusive manufacturer has agreed to revise its plans for Silverstone and change the initially planned tire allocation. This will serve as a full-scale test for the different parties involved: « This has been discussed with the teams and drivers. We all agree to conduct this test. It’s not our initial choice but it’s a slightly more aggressive option. We will see if it’s the right direction » indicated the Italian manager.
Now we can only hope that the British test does not take place on a wet track, in which case the trial may not be very conclusive…
With the participation of www.racingbusiness.fr
