FIA has set a limit of max 18 laps for new tyre sets in the race today. That means 3 pit stops will be mandatory for each driver.
If a driver goes over the limit he will be black flagged.
Hmm curious to see how this works out during the race. Yesterday during the post sprint show of F1TV they mentioned there were only 2 drivers in the field with enough new mediums and hards to pull off a 3 pitstop race. Their conclusion was that it would be a 4 pitstop race for many since softs aren’t durable enough for 18 rounds. So it will be an interesting race.
Guess the track modifications yesterday didn't help as much as they hoped.
Anyone have a list of what tires teams have left? Going through 4 sets will be interesting
Ah this is great! Thank ya
Why the deg is high here? Is it just because the tarmak is too hot?
The problem here isn't traditional deg, that happens across the contact patch as the tire spins and slides.
The problem they are having is sidewall deg and separating construction within the tire. The rubber compound and the belts within the sidewall are coming apart, supposedly because of the new pyramid style kerb design used for this race. That's why they modified part of the track yesterday and moved the white line farther away from that style kerb.
The traditional deg here is massive but that's something the teams usually have figured out before Sunday. Since this was a sprint weekend they'll have less data than they'd like but that just makes the race more exciting with multiple tire strategies in play.
The issue this weekend is one of safety because of a poorly tested track design and racing on a green track. It's becoming somewhat of a tradition in F1.
Temperature, new tarmac, and most importantly saw tooth edging on the corners that the drivers are all over. Only place with that type of edging and it's eating the tyres
As well as the points the other replies have made, it's also in the desert so the sand generally adds to the tyre degradation too
@xooolooov @formula1 I think also the high speed corners play a role in this
Agreed. This track being nearly all high speed corners and high air and track temperatures all contribute to premature degradation because the tires weren’t optimized to be operated in this environment
Expecting a lot of safety cars. Most of the pit stops might be happening during that.
Will they be given a extra medium tire? Or it will be a slow soft, normal medium and a push hard tire stint for most.
So taking a soft to 18 laps is just as allowed as taking a hard there?
Pirelli brought the wrong tyre.
F1 brought the wrong tyre-supplier...
They are designed to degrade like this for show. When the degradation is more than anticipated, it's too late to get a different type compound since these things are planed way in advance
No one else wants to supply tires to F1 while they’re designed to degrade quickly and predictably.