The recent Monaco Grand Prix, with a strategy virtually nullified after the red flag, reopened the tire discussion on city tracks. Despite the Principality circuit not relying on high-grip asphalt, tire degradation has always been relatively contained.
Last Sunday, despite extremely slow laps, at times 3 or 4 seconds slower than normal, almost all drivers completed 76 laps with the same set of tires, whether using medium or hard compounds. Those who stopped did so mostly for strategic reasons, aiming to change tires within a window to try and gain an advantage. However, as demonstrated by the few overtakes, even this move yielded little.
To try to liven up the Grand Prix, drivers have suggested the possibility of having a softer compound specifically for events like Monaco. This would lead to even more pronounced degradation, forcing multiple pit stops.
With data gathered from the recent Ferrari test at Paul Ricard earlier in the week, Pirelli is getting closer to defining the construction and compounds for the upcoming season. It’s crucial to note that the Milan-based manufacturer has deadlines set by the FIA to define certain characteristics of its tires.
Considering a new C6 for city circuits
An interesting aspect is that, as explained by Mario Isola, Pirelli is considering introducing a new C6 compound, which would be a softer step compared to the current one, adapting to a variety of city tracks. With the current configuration, the compounds designed by the Italian company, including the C5, have to cater to a wide range of scenarios. For example, while Jeddah boasts excellent grip on its asphalt, the tire must withstand the high-speed corners scattered throughout the track, with significant longitudinal and lateral loads.
Compared to other circuits, Monaco has asphalt that doesn’t provide a high level of grip, and given its relatively slow nature, there are few corners that put significant energy into the tires. Therefore, the C5, the softest compound in the current range, must tackle completely different challenges that may not necessarily suit all tracks.
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The C6 would come into play here, also addressing the increasing number of city circuits in the championship. In fact, in the first nine rounds of the championship, including Canada, the C5 has been nominated for four different GPs, including the Emilia-Romagna race, Australia, and Monaco: “The idea is also to introduce a new C6 compound, a softer step, because on the calendar, we have more and more street circuits, and we need softer compounds. We will shift the range a bit towards the softer side, always trying to reduce overheating,” said Mario Isola.
Probably in Monaco, given the difficulties in overtaking, even the introduction of a softer compound wouldn’t make much of a difference strategically, as teams would manage their pace to opt for the most convenient tactic. However, on other tracks like Las Vegas and Canada, this could open up new scenarios, perhaps pushing races towards two stops.
It’s a unique race where basically everything is decided on Saturday with qualifying, unless there’s something unpredictable or unusual. But for the rest of the street circuits, if we go softer, maybe we can change the approach a bit and open up a two-stop strategy where we have one. I’m thinking about other street circuits like Miami and Las Vegas, the new ones. It’s possible. But for Monaco, to be honest, I think there’s very little to be done,” said Isola.
Ideas to liven up Monaco
Drivers have also suggested other proposals to try to liven up the Monaco event, including the idea of bringing only soft tires instead of the usual three compounds. From a certain point of view, Monte Carlo has always been unique, and the difficulty in completing overtakes is part of the charm of the Principality circuit, which makes qualifying the real spectacle of the weekend.
Mario Isola explained that he would be happy to ask the teams for simulations to understand how the race would change by using only soft tires, providing another reference to make their evaluations. However, the Pirelli manager is not convinced that this would radically change the show on the track, as it would only push the teams towards even more tire management.
“I heard the proposal and talked to the drivers about it. I believe we can ask the teams to do a simulation and see what happens. But in 2018, when they mounted softer tires, if I remember correctly, they were eight seconds slower than the potential pace, going at the pace of F2.”
Precisely for this reason, having a softer compound for Monaco wouldn’t necessarily force teams into additional pit stops. Indeed, according to Isola, the risk would be that the same theme seen on other tracks would reappear, namely a more pronounced tire management to save time on a pit stop and maintain track position.
“The problem with Monaco is that you can’t overtake, so you can slow down by 2/3/4 seconds per lap and no one can pass you. The important thing, in my opinion, is to consider not only the tires but also the reason why a team decides to stop or not. It’s a combination of tire degradation, ease of overtaking, and the time taken for the pit stop. Imola is a good example because if it takes 28 seconds for an additional pit stop, you try not to do it.”
Mario Isola also added another important point, namely that a minimum number of pit stops would not actually add any value to the race. Even with very soft tires, teams would tend to mark each other, most likely opting for similar strategies. “I remember many years ago, when there was this proposal [to require two stops], we discussed it, and the teams asked their engineers to do a simulation.”
“The result was that they all came back with more or less the same strategy. So, by adding constraints, we are not pushing them to have different strategies or different approaches to the race, but only to converge towards the same tactic. And that’s not what we want. What we want is a mix of one and two stops, with different compounds. To solve the problem, we need to work together, sit down, consider all the proposals, do a simulation, and understand which is the best approach.” For example, beyond the red flag that changed all the scenarios, last Sunday several drivers from fifth place onwards had fitted the hard tire to extend the first stint and hope for a Safety Car at the right moment.
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