McLaren, Haas, and Williams in Silverstone for Pirelli tests

The three teams participated in the sixth test of the year for Pirelli tires in Formula 1 this Tuesday, July 9. In total, 201 laps were completed for the Italian tire manufacturer. Mick Schumacher set the fastest time after a day disrupted by rain.

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After the tests conducted in Barcelona, Jerez de la Frontera, Le Castellet, and Mugello, Pirelli and the Formula 1 teams met at the Silverstone circuit, just a few days after the British Grand Prix. It was a great opportunity for the three teams involved in this test, McLaren, Haas, and Williams, to drive again on this legendary track, especially for their reserve driver, as apart from the Grove team which had Alexander Albon driving, the other two teams called upon their reserves. Thus, Haas gave the wheel to Pietro Fittipaldi while McLaren opted for the Mercedes reserve driver, Mick Schumacher.

This test mainly aimed at analyzing the Pirelli tires for 2025 and assessing what improvements could be made, especially in terms of their construction, as these are the last 18-inch tires that Pirelli will supply before the introduction of new regulations in 2026, which plan to reduce the width of the tires. At the front, they will go from 305 to 275 millimeters and from 405 to 375 millimeters at the rear with the ambition of reducing aerodynamic drag to decrease the energy consumption of single-seaters.

A necessary test but hampered by the weather

Thanks to this, these three teams were able to collect some information, but the weather conditions made it impossible to use dry tires, especially the C6 tire that Pirelli will introduce next year to better tackle street circuits. Thus, the program focused solely on analyzing the intermediate tires in order to optimize them for next year and to understand their behavior. After the Japanese Grand Prix, Pirelli had also announced that the biggest problem for us at the moment is finalizing the development of an intermediate tire capable of operating without heating blankets, as well as a full wet tire with better performance.

« We know that time passes quickly and that we must finalize everything as much as possible in advance, as the weather conditions may not be good enough for certain tests. The opportunities to test rain or intermediate tires are very limited. » Urgency is therefore paramount within Pirelli to best prepare the 18-inch tires for 2025, but also to « best prepare the development of tires for 2026 », as explained by Pirelli Motorsport director Mario Isola to the media last weekend at Silverstone.

« I believe that we now have a good product very close to the goals that Formula 1 has defined for us. This was made possible thanks to the testing days that, after several years, we were able to obtain. This shows you how important testing is.

In the end, 201 laps were completed on this first day of testing. Alex Albon was the most productive driver with 86 laps completed, 62 for Haas reserve driver Pietro Fittipaldi, and 53 for Mick Schumacher who still set the fastest time in 1:37.428. The test will continue on Wednesday with Lando Norris in the McLaren, Logan Sargeant at Williams, and British driver Ollie Bearman in his future Haas team.

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