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TYRE TALES:
HOW THE RACE WAS WON
The phenomenal performance of the P Zero White hard tyre, along with a
virtual safety car and safety car, influenced the outcome of the race.
Verstappen started from pole on the soft tyre in his Red Bull and then
switched to the medium tyre, which gave Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton – who
had started on the medium – an advantage in terms of track position. Once
Hamilton switched to the hard, he was able to make his pace count. But
during the race neutralisations, Red Bull made exactly the right strategy
calls, with all the frontrunners making the same number of tyre changes in
the end. At the final re-start, Verstappen found himself on soft tyres
behind Hamilton on the medium tyres, and he was able to use the speed of
this compound to help make the difference.
BEST OF THE
REST: THE ALTERNATIVE STRATEGY
Of the 20 drivers on the grid, 16 started on the soft tyre and just four on
the medium – including both Mercedes. This set up a brilliant alternative
strategy, as it unlocked the door to a one-stopper, thanks to the incredibly
low degradation of the hard tyre over a long stint. Mercedes was the first
to realise this, which is what put them in a position to challenge for
victory from P4 on the grid – but then the safety car periods mixed up the
cards.
MARIO ISOLA - HEAD OF F1 AND CAR RACING
“With the energy and the passion of the fans at Zandvoort still ringing in
our ears, we had to Monza: an incredibly important venue for Formula 1,
where we celebrate 100 years of the circuit and 150 years of Pirelli: an
Italian institution that is synonymous with motorsport. Today once more the
tyres showed themselves to be perfect, by allowing for different strategies,
increasing the number of on-track battles as well as overtaking moves, and
helping us to deliver a successful and spectacular product that people love,
while still guaranteeing the safety that is essential for a sport such as
F1. This is a global success that we’d like to celebrate at Monza in style,
hoping also that there’s space for a bit of red there too after all this
orange!” |
