What types of tires for the first three races of 2010?

Bridgestone has chosen to adopt a more conservative approach for the tires used in the Australian Grand Prix this year. Indeed, the manufacturer has decided to provide harder compounds than in 2009.

Last year, the Melbourne race was marked by the rapid performance loss of the Super-soft tires, so Bridgestone will bring its Medium and Hard compounds in 2010 for what is now the second race of the season.

The contribution for the other races at the start of the season remains unchanged compared to last year. The tire manufacturer will allocate Super-softs and Mediums in Bahrain, then Mediums and Hard tires in Malaysia.

Hirohide Hamashima, responsible for the development of Bridgestone Motorsport tires, stated: « Tire strategy will be very important in 2010 because there is no more refueling. It was an important factor in determining when a pit stop should occur. »

« We have changed all our dry compounds for this season because the cars will be heavier and the stints can be longer. We have also made modifications to allow the tires to heat up more quickly. We will bring harder tires to Australia compared to last year, but the compounds for Bahrain and Malaysia remain the same as in 2009. »

« There will be a big challenge for the teams this season on how they will use their tires. Indeed, they will have fewer dry tires available than in the past, especially with the soft tires, » concluded the Japanese.