Renault prepare for a tyre change in Monza - Photo Credit: Pirelli
Pirelli have today announced the two tyre compounds that it will provide for teams at the Japanese and Korean Grand Prix.
The Italian tyre company will be providing the PZero yellow Soft and the white Medium compounds for the race in Suzuka, a track that contains a number of medium and fast corners, such as Spoon Curve and the infamous 130R.
For the Korean Grand Prix one week later, which takes place on a tighter and twistier low-grip circuit, the Soft compound will be paired with the (red) supersoft compound – this is the same allocation that teams will use in Singapore next weekend, and was used earlier in the season in Monaco, Canada and Hungary.
“After careful analysis of all the data we have available, we have come up with what we believe to be the nominations that are best suited to the characteristics of each circuit,” said Paul Hembery, Motorsport Director at Pirelli. “While Suzuka is a track that we've competed on before, both in GT racing and on motorbikes, Korea is a circuit that most people are still learning about. Nonetheless, we benefit from advanced simulation technology that allows us to accurately predict the likely behaviour of each tyre even on tracks that we have never seen before.
“The extra performance of the supersoft makes it one of the most dynamic tyres in our range, which will form a key part of the strategy in Korea. Before then, the combination of medium and soft that will be used in Japan was last seen on our home grand prix in Italy, resulting in an extremely exciting race.”
