Pirelli Motorsport Director Mario Isola said that the Canadian Grand Prix ended up harbouring a mixed bag of tyre strategies, with the podium finishers– Max Verstappen, Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton— electing to stick with the expected two-stop, while the likes of Scuderia Ferrari and a few other runners found success with the alternative one-stop.
He added that Ferrari’s ability to manage the one-stop strategy is evidence of solid improvement on their part when it comes to the car’s balance and set-up.
“It was a very interesting race, the most closely balanced so far this season, as can be seen from the results sheet, with four drivers from four different teams all finishing in the space of under 20 seconds.
“Yesterday’s prediction that a two-stop strategy was the best option was confirmed as the top three all went down this route, even if they each managed it in different ways. However, the one stop proved to be a valid alternative, as demonstrated by the two Ferrari drivers: Leclerc and Sainz went to over half-distance on the Mediums without any significant degradation in terms of tyre performance, a sign that their car is making progress on the set-up front.”
Isola noted the dip in temperature on Sunday as opposed to Friday’s testing sessions as another factor that supported tyre management on race day, as well as the evolution of Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve through the Grand Prix.
“Temperatures were lower today than on Friday and that contributed to reducing the risk of overheating the tyres. Another factor that played an important role in tyre management was the fact the track rubbered-in very quickly during the race, even though it was initially very dirty after it had rained for almost all of Saturday.”
The Canadian Grand Prix marked a special achievement for this season’s leading constructor, Red Bull Racing, with the outfit taking its hundredth win. Isola said that he was honoured to award Red Bull’s Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey the constructor’s trophy on this special occasion.
“Personally, it was an honour for me, on behalf of Pirelli, the race’s Title Sponsor, to hand over the winning constructors’ trophy to Adrian Newey, someone who has contributed so much to the history of this team and of our sport and indeed, who continues to do so, on the very day when Red Bull celebrated its 100th win.”
