One of the key factors behind Ferrari’s disappointing Austrian Grand Prix was tyre management, particularly with the C3 compound. However, the Scuderia has made a very different start to the British Grand Prix weekend at Silverstone. The SF-26 looked competitive from the very first laps of Free Practice 1, and Lewis Hamilton rewarded the home fans by securing an important Sprint pole position.
This performance carries far more significance than Ferrari’s qualifying result in Austria. At the Red Bull Ring, the Scuderia started second and third largely because Max Verstappen’s incident in Q3 triggered double yellow flags, allowing Ferrari to capitalise on the circumstances. In the race, however, neither Lewis Hamilton nor Charles Leclerc had the pace to defend those positions.
Ferrari looking for tyre confirmation
Silverstone presents a very different scenario. Ferrari produced its strongest qualifying performance of the season so far, while the long-run pace shown on the hard C1 tyre during FP1 was also highly encouraging.
The Sprint Race, however, is expected to revolve around the medium C2 compound, a tyre that was only used during SQ1 and SQ2 on Friday.
The leading teams each have two new and two used sets of the C2 tyres available. Assuming they keep their single remaining set of hard C1 tyres for Sunday’s Grand Prix, along with the four sets of soft C3 tyres required for Saturday’s qualifying session, teams will most likely choose between a new or a used set of medium tyres for the Sprint.
That decision will depend heavily on the race strategy each team has already planned for Sunday’s Grand Prix.
At the moment, the most likely approach appears to be a one-stop strategy using Medium-Hard tyres. A two-stop race, using either Medium-Hard-Medium or Medium-Hard-Soft, also remains a possibility.
Some teams may decide to save both new sets of medium tyres for Sunday’s Grand Prix, opting to run the Sprint on a used C2 set. Others may choose the opposite strategy, using a fresh set today while accepting that, if a two-stop strategy becomes necessary on Sunday, they may have to rely on either used medium tyres or a set of softs.
Low degradation could open strategic opportunities
One of the most interesting findings from FP1 was the extremely low tyre degradation.
Drivers were able to complete long runs on the hard C1 compound without suffering any significant drop in performance. Ferrari’s race pace was particularly encouraging because the SF-26 actually became more competitive as the stint progressed.
The low degradation could also give the soft C3 compound a role during both the Sprint and Sunday’s Grand Prix. However, since the leading teams have fewer new soft tyres available, this option is expected to be more attractive for drivers starting further down the grid.
After losing momentum in Austria, Ferrari needs to fully rediscover its form at Silverstone. Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will use the Sprint as an important opportunity to verify the SF-26’s tyre behaviour under race conditions.
The disappointing weekend at Spielberg must quickly become a distant memory, and Silverstone offers Ferrari the perfect chance to reinforce the setup philosophy that now appears capable of unlocking the car’s full potential.
Pirelli’s view ahead of the Sprint
Pirelli Motorsport Director Dario Marrafuschi shared his assessment following Sprint Qualifying:
“The Silverstone weekend has started largely in line with our expectations. The drivers used FP1 to become familiar with the C1 compound, which, before Silverstone, had only been used at Suzuka. The C2 and C3 compounds, on the other hand, were mainly used for low-fuel performance runs, allowing the teams to gather valuable data ahead of the remainder of the weekend.”
“Tyre degradation matched our expectations, while the initial performance difference between the Medium and Soft compounds, with identical fuel loads, was around four tenths of a second. That is approximately one tenth less than our simulations had indicated. We expect an interesting Sprint from a tyre strategy perspective. The Soft compound also appears capable of becoming a competitive option, particularly for drivers starting in the second half of the grid,” concluded Dario Marrafuschi.
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