F1 teams to test more robust Pirelli tyre after Baku blowouts

F1

New, sturdier rear tyres will be tested by F1 teams in Austria next weekend and, if successful, will be raced at the British Grand Prix

F1 mechanic carries a Pirelli tyre

DPPI

F1 teams will test a new, more robust Pirelli rear tyre next weekend, in a further measure to prevent the rear tyre blowouts suffered by Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll.

Each driver will have two sets of the tyres to use in either Friday practice session for the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull ring, which follows this weekend’s Styrian race at the same circuit.

If successful, the new tyres will be used in the British Grand Prix on July 18, replacing the existing specification.

Pirelli’s investigation into the Baku tyre failures found that they were running — legally — at lower pressures than it had anticipated, which improves performance but increases the loads on the tyres.

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A technical directive issued by the FIA governing body, at the French Grand Prix, introduced temperature checks to ensure tyres were not being overheated to comply with minimum starting pressures — only for them to fall when on track. Pirelli also raised the minimum starting pressure by 2psi to reduce the loads on the sidewalls.

The new tyres, which incorporate some features in the 18in tyres that the cars will use next year, are another step in reducing the risk of blowouts.

“With this new structure Pirelli provides a tyre that can guarantee even greater levels of integrity under the extreme conditions that can be generated by the current cars,” the tyre manufacturer said in a statement.

Mandatory tyre pressure monitoring systems will feed live information back to the FIA and Pirelli from next year but until then, rulemakers are unable to see running pressures.