In 2018 Formula One official tyre supplier Pirelli set out to invoke more pit stops in races by opting for increasingly aggressive (soft) tyre compound choices. The theory was that making the tyres more prone to degradation would induce more pit stops, but more often than not a one-stop race was still possible if the driver managed their tyres in the first stint. Anybody that bucked the trend and tried to do a faster two stop to emerge ahead by the end of the race would run the risk of getting stuck in traffic with the potential to lose time. As a result, races became increasingly predictable and relatively slow-paced, with a few well-timed push laps around pit stops to try to gain or keep a position. In 2019, Pirelli wants to take a different approach by embracing the one-stop race and allowing drivers to push.
“We saw in 2018 most of the races were a one stop,” Pirelli’s head of racing Mario Isola explained. “The only result is that we went softer and softer and teams were managing the pace more and more. So is it good that we continue with this approach or should we just accept that we have one-stop races but maybe we go one step harder and teams can push, and drivers can push? If you ask me my personal opinion, this is the better direction to go in.” – he added.
“We accept that we have one-stop races but at least we give the opportunity to drivers to push. In 2019 we will have a new aero package. It’s not clear if it is making a big difference or not — if you speak to the teams somebody is saying that it is a difference, somebody is saying in a couple of races it’ll be the same, they’re the experts — so we’re just collecting the feedback. They will have more fuel, 5kg, that means they can manage a little bit less the fuel. We know that in some races they had to manage the fuel as it was not enough to finish the race. So we have to consider all the package, with more fuel they can push more and at this point it’s probably better to give them more consistent tyres and they push and fight on track instead of overcut, undercut and trying to make tricks during the pit stop. The pit stop is part of the race but I think that in this sport everybody likes overtaking on track rather than when the car is in the pit lane.” – Mario Isola said.
The most obvious physical change to the tyres in 2019 is the new naming and colouring system, but technically there are some changes too. Part of the reason why drivers were unable to push in 2018 was blistering on the rubber. The problem was clear as early as pre-season testing and Pirelli took the unusual step of making the tread of the tyre thinner at the Spanish, French and British Grands Prix to combat it. All three races were due to take place on re-laid tracks and the smoother surface simply didn’t result in as much physical wear as before. With more rubber remaining on the tyre, it retained more heat, resulting in the rubber blistering on the softer compounds. In 2019 all tyres will be made with the thinner gauge rubber to try to combat blistering at all venues, allowing drivers to push harder.
“If I compare just the reduction in tread thickness, that is one of the new characteristics we decided to implement in the new tyres,” Isola added. “This reduction was reducing the blister massively in Barcelona, in Paul Ricard and in Silverstone and in Barcelona we had a clear comparison made by all the teams as they had the in-season test the week after. In Silverstone we were there for our tyre development test, we compared the normal version with the reduced one and it was clear that the normal one was going to blister a lot and the reduced one was a lot better.” – Pirelli’s head of racing concluded.
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