Tyre supplier Pirelli is choosing the softest possible compounds
for the final two races of the season. The tyre supplier has six
different tyres, the C0 (the hardest) through to the C5 (the
softest). Each weekend they choose three, which then go through
life as Hard, Medium and Soft. In Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi, they
will race the C3, C4 and C5. The race in Las Vegas is a big
unknown, as it will be driven there for the first time since 1982,
but on a completely different circuit. The teams have no real
reference and will have to rely on simulations to determine a basic
setup, which will be further developed over the weekend. Another
unknown factor will be temperatures, as all sessions will take
place after sunset. Pirelli boss Mario Isola said: “Las Vegas is a
step into the unknown, for everyone I think. Las Vegas will be
cold, it’s a street circuit. That’s why we worked with the teams
and asked them in advance for simulations to try to understand how
much energy the layout of the track puts on the tires. We got
information from the companies that make the asphalt to understand
how the asphalt works. But there are still a lot of question marks
at Las Vegas.” “We obviously can’t change the weather, we can’t
raise the temperature. It could be a challenge to keep the
temperature in the tire. So we decided to promote grip by using the
three softest compounds in the pool. I can imagine a lot of track
evolution and little grip. So the teams will complain! That’s fine.
We will also deal with this situation. But it’s an unknown leap of
faith. A fast track, long straights, high speed and all conditions
that are difficult to manage.” Check below for the entire overview
of tyre choices in 2023. Pirelli 2023 tire choices
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