Pirelli chose to use mid-size compound tires – C2, C3 and C4 – for the Brazilian Grand Prix. Motorsport director Mario Isola expects a lot of overtaking at the historic Autodromo José Carlos Pace circuit, which has allowed different tire strategies in the past.
“Formula 1 will head to Interlagos next weekend: it will be the shortest lap of the year after Monaco and Mexico. This is a historic anti-clockwise track that alternates between several fast sections and medium speed corner sequences such as the famous “Senna esses”.
Isola describes the circuit as being less demanding on tires due to its “liquid” nature, allowing teams and drivers to better manage tire wear.
“The tires are not very demanding in terms of traction and braking as their layout is very smooth and the lack of slow cornering means the team can control rear tire wear.”
Tires will play a key role in Saturday’s strategy as Brazil hosts the last sprint of the season. Isola said the start tires for 2021 will be mixed, with soft and medium tires for the short race.
“This year Brazil will also host the Sprint, the last of the season, this racing package will be of particular interest to see what is happening on the track and the key role of the different strategies that can be used: in 2021, on Saturday, the starting grid is evenly divided between drivers on medium and soft tyres.
Interlagos provided the backdrop for a memorable end-of-season battle between title contenders Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, which Hamilton won after an impressive sprint. Under the new rules for 2022, Isola expects an equally exciting race this year.
“Even though the track is short, there are usually a lot of overtaking. Think Lewis Hamilton, the protagonist of the comeback, who used a two-stop strategy to win from 10th place. So the new generation of cars and tires seems to provide us with one more exciting game this year.”