After a successful performance in Monaco, Pirelli's
new P Zero Red supersoft tire will be joined by the
harder P Zero Yellow tire at the upcoming Canadian
Grand Prix.
Like Monaco, Canada is a semi-permanent facility;
however, the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is faster
with a low-grip surface – the two parameters that
have a far-reaching effect on tire wear. There are
also areas of heavy braking and maximum traction,
which are additional factors regarding the
tires.
Consequently, long stints of more than 50 laps on
the P Zero tires, as seen in Monaco, are unlikely
and instead there will be a return to wheel-to-
wheel sprint racing.
Tire wear is a critical factor at the Montreal
circuit. Since its inauguration in 1978, the track
has undergone a number of changes, notably some
resurfacing before last year’s grand prix and other
additions that influence the way that the tires
behave.
With the track hosting only two major races per
season – Formula One and NASCAR –there is a marked
evolution in terms of grip over the course of the
weekend as more rubber gets laid down on the
surface, according to Paul Hembery, Pirelli’s
motorsports director.
On Friday, drivers will be given two additional
sets of Pirelli’s new medium compound slicks to
evaluate during two practice sessions.
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“Monaco was a fantastic race, with three drivers
battling closely for the win even though they were
using three very different strategies,” says
Hembery. “From the data we can see that Sebastian
Vettel’s tires would have gone the distance if he
had continued to drive on them in the same way that
he had been doing up to the red flag period. This
means that he could have covered 62 laps, the
equivalent of more than 200 kilometers, on the P
Zero Yellow soft tire, with an extremely close
finish,” he reports.
“The characteristics of Canada mean that we’re
unlikely to see a one-stop strategy this weekend,
but we’re hoping that the racing will be just as
close and that the opportunities for overtaking
will give teams even more possibilities than Monaco
in terms of race strategy,” Hembery forecasts. “The
pure performance of the P Zero tires was
demonstrated by the fact that we were able to set
the fastest-ever qualifying lap of Monaco, adding
to our record of success, which now includes more
than 50 grand prix wins throughout our time in
Formula One,” he observes.
“The Montreal circuit can be hard on tires because
the cars run on low downforce and the tarmac is
quite low grip,” says driver Rubens Barrichello.
“The track has some change of direction, is very
hard on brakes and has two hairpins that make good
traction very important,” he explains.
“Turn One, for example,” says Barrichello, “is a
corner that you carry a lot of speed into and then
you brake hard into the hairpin in first gear. The
minimum speed is low but traction is hard on tires.
There are a lot of hard braking areas throughout
the lap. I love the circuit and racing there is
always good. I look forward to racing on the
Pirelli P Zero tires in Canada.”
For more information, visit www.us.pirelli.com.