07/04/2023
NEWS STORY
Pirelli has revealed the tyre compounds to be used in the Azerbaijan, Miami and Emilia Romagna Grands Prix.
On the Baku street circuit, the teams will have at their disposal the C3, C4 and C5, the softest compounds in Pirelli's range, which are well suited to the tight corners on the city circuit as well as the long straights where the cars reach a maximum speed of 340kph (210 mph).
The most common strategy for the Grand Prix is a one-stopper, although some teams stopped twice last year to take advantage of a virtual safety car before the chequered flag. The race was held at the beginning of June in 2022, with thermal degradation becoming a factor due to the high asphalt temperature.
The Baku event also features the first Sprint of the year, with qualifying for the Grand Prix taking place at 17:00 (local time) on Friday, while Saturday afternoon (13:30) sees qualifying for the Sprint which gets underway at (17:30). Sunday's Grand Prix begins at 15:00, the various timings of the sessions set to add to the conundrum in terms of tyre choice.
For Miami, Pirelli has nominated the C2, C3 and C4, as was the case last year, though the compounds have been marginally changed since then.
For Miami the focus is on versatility for a street track which takes in 19 corners as well as three long straights.
The race can be completed by stopping only once, as a number of drivers demonstrated last year with good management of an opening stint on the medium tyre, even though a two-stopper is quicker on paper. The weather in Florida is a constant variable, with the risk of wind and rain another factor to consider.
For the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, softer tyres have been chosen due to the low severity of the circuit and the contained wear seen on the tyres last year.
The C3 is the hard, while the C4 is the medium and C5 the soft.
A new qualifying format will also be trialled at Imola, with just one compound used in each session. In Q1 only the hard will be available, Q2 will use only the medium, while the soft is just for Q3.
This "Alternative Tyre Allocation", which will also be used at another race weekend this year, reduces the total tyre allocation for each car from 13 sets to 11 per weekend.
The new Blue Full Wet, the first Pirelli rain tyres that don't need tyre blankets, will also make their debut at the Italian race.
| Grand Prix | Soft | Medium | Hard |
| Bahrain | C3 | C2 | C1 |
| Saudi Arabia | C4 | C3 | C2 |
| Australia | C4 | C3 | C2 |
| Azerbaijan | C5 | C4 | C3 |
| Miami | C4 | C3 | C2 |
| Emilia Romagna | C5 | C4 | C3 |