36 sets of tires per team brought by Pirelli for the three-day testing
Pirelli has announced its tires that will be used by the teams during the Bahrain tests.
On the eve of the start of the final testing days in Bahrain, Pirelli announced the tires that would be made available to the teams. The Italian manufacturer is providing its usual seven range of tires: five slick tires, the intermediates, and the wet tires. The tires range from C1, the hardest, to C5, the softest.
Each team will have thirty sets of tires to test on the Sakhir circuit. The tires are the same as those used during the Barcelona tests, with Pirelli only recommending teams to increase the tire pressure slightly (minimum of 22.5 psi at the front and 20.5 psi at the rear for slicks, compared to 21.5 and 18 respectively in Catalonia).
A decision motivated by the greater degradation of tires in Bahrain due to the intense heat.
Pirelli has also brought its intermediate and rain tires, but they should not be used as there will be no artificial dampening of the track like in Barcelona. It would also be very surprising to see rain falling on the circuit.
Finally, a prototype of the C2 tire will also be made available to the teams. It is a compound manufactured in Pirelli’s secondary factory in Turkey. As a reminder, all the tires used in F1 are built in a factory in Slatina, Romania.
The manufacturer wants to ensure that there is no difference between the tires produced by its two factories. The teams will have two sets of these C2 prototypes at their disposal, and they will be identifiable for having no markings.
36 sets of tires are therefore provided by Pirelli for each team during these three days: 30 sets of slick tires, 2 sets of prototypes from the factory in Turkey, 2 sets for intermediate conditions, and 2 sets for rain.
