08/05/2011
NEWS STORY
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Pirelli has revealed the tyre compound choices for the Canadian, European and British Grands Prix.
In Canada, the soft and the supersoft tyre will be used as prime and option respectively: as is the case in Monaco, where the supersoft tyre is making its debut.
In Valencia, the street circuit that hosts the Grand Prix of Europe, the medium tyre will make its debut as the prime with the supersoft as the option.
In Britain, the race that marks the halfway point of the 2011 season, the hard and soft tyres will be prime and option respectively: mirroring the choices made for the first five grands prix of the season.
Montreal, a race where tyres have traditionally played a major role, has similar characteristics to Monaco in terms of grip and traction, which is why the same nominations of soft and supersoft have been made.
Valencia is a street circuit that is faster than Monaco, which means that the medium tyre can make its debut. Representing a compromise between the hard and the soft tyre, the medium PZero - denoted by white markings - is ideally suited to the characteristics of the surface and the likely weather conditions.
Silverstone is one of the fastest tracks of the entire calendar, with the well-proven hard and soft tyres covering all the demands that this circuit makes on the rubber.
"When calculating which tyres we will bring to every circuit, we bear a number of factors in mind such as the weather conditions and the nature of the surface," said Pirelli's motorsport director Paul Hembery. "We then make sure that we select two tyres that will complement each other in terms of racing spectacle and potential strategies as well. So we've come up with tyre nominations that should not only be well suited to the characteristics of each circuit but also provide a great race for the drivers and spectators, with plenty of scope for the teams to exercise their strategic skills.
"Selecting the tyres is a very tough job for us," he continued, "as in Montreal, Valencia and Silverstone we have no historical data, but we're feeling confident that the choices we have made, in close consultation with the teams and the FIA, should continue the Pirelli tradition of close racing that we have seen so far this year."