Pirelli has outlined that a one-stop strategy will be the quickest approach for Formula 1’s second round of the World Championship, the Styrian Grand Prix.
F1 will race back-to-back on the same circuit for another Grand Prix for the first time in the history of the World Championship.
Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas claimed the victory in a tense affair in the 2020 season-opener with numerous retirements and Safety Car appearances. His strategy saw him stop on lap 26 and run the Hard compound to the end of the race.
Due to a very wet qualifying session on Saturday, every driver on the grid will be allowed to choose their tyre strategy for the 71-lap race.
Pirelli believes a one-stop strategy on the Soft/Hard compounds will be the fastest way to approach the race, stopping between laps 28-33 to switch to the Hards until the chequered flag.
The Italian manufacturer also suggests an alternate Medium/Soft one-stopper could be just as fast as the Soft/Hard strategy if a pit stop were made between laps 30-35.
An alternative – slightly slower one-stop strategy – is to go through the Medium/Hard compounds, making a stop between laps 24-30 laps to make the changeover to the Hards.
A potential two-stopping strategy has been taken into consideration as one of the slowest ways to complete the race, completing two stints on the Softs ranging from 24-26 laps and then running the Mediums until the finish.
With a very green track awaiting the drivers today, the tyre distances could vary.
“It wasn’t an easy qualifying session for the drivers, with no FP3 and their first experience of these 2020 cars on wet tyres in qualifying, leading to some interesting surprises on the grid,” said Mario Isola, Head of F1 and Car Racing.
“In these unpredictable and extreme conditions, the teams and drivers had to adapt quickly to the changing circumstances.
“With qualifying being wet, the usual rule that the top 10 have to start the race on their Q2 tyre doesn’t apply – so everyone has a free choice tomorrow, which should open up a few different possibilities for strategy.”
