Mercedes have opted for fewer soft tyres any of their rivals for next week’s race in Japan, where teams will use Pirelli’s hardest selection of tyres.
The C1 (hard, white), C2 (medium, yellow) and C3 (soft, red) compounds have been nominated for Suzuka, one of the most punishing tracks on the calendar for tyre wear.Mercedes has selected eight sets of the soft tyres, one fewer than any other team, which it has used to take an extra set of mediums compared to Ferrari and Red Bull.
Renault and Haas have opted for the largest stock of soft tyres, with 10 sets each, while Racing Point are the only team to bring more than the mandatory single set of hard tyres for both its drivers.
2019 Japanese Grand Prix tyre selections
| Driver | Team | Hard (C1) | Medium (C2) | Soft (C3) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Alexander Albon | Red Bull | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Daniel Riccairdo | Renault | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 2 | 1 | 10 |
| Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Romain Grosjean | Haas | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Carlos Sainz Jnr | McLaren | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Lando Norris | McLaren | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Sergio Perez | Racing Point | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| Lance Stroll | Racing Point | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Pierre Gasly | Toro Rosso | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| George Russell | Williams | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| Robert Kubica | Williams | 1 | 3 | 9 |
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Racing dave
3rd October 2019, 11:05
F1 want to mix it up for the show – simple idea.
Give them 4 sets of each compound per race weekend anD let them get on with it. Out of 4 compounds they can only choose 3.
They will really have to care about what they do with their tyres. Then change quali format to MotoGP style where practice laps decide wether you are in quali one or straight to q2 with only the top two q1 drives getting to proceed to q2.
What do you think mr. Brawn?
RB13
3rd October 2019, 11:22
Why do these cars look so good in photos but just alright in live video. I think it’s something to do with static photos somewhat hiding the sheer length of the things so they look more squat, whereas in live video they look too big / long.
Random observation, that Merc photo at the top of the article looks so good.
anon
3rd October 2019, 12:59
RB13, well, some have commented that the way that the camera angles and the field of view which are adopted by the trackside cameras do seem to have more of a focus on the environment, and in particular the sponsors that are in the background of the cars. It’s also been noted that there seem to have been other changes to the way that the cameras operate too (for example, the onboard cameras seem to have had the shutter speed slowed down in recent years) that also shift the perception of what the cars are like.
asherway (@asherway)
3rd October 2019, 15:38
The car’s weight doesn’t translate to photos. Video though…
Chaitanya
3rd October 2019, 14:54
Hoping we get mixed conditions in Japan. As it stands Mercs certainly seem to understand tyres better than their 2 rivals so wonder their selection is more geared towards mediums.
James Neutron (@phillyspur)
3rd October 2019, 15:48
Can someone remind me again how this year’s tire designations compare to last year’s.
Neil (@neilosjames)
3rd October 2019, 19:13
2019 C1 = 2018 Hard (but the C5 is a little softer)
2019 C2 = 2018 Medium
2019 C3 = 2018 Soft
2019 C4 = 2018 Ultrasoft (more or less)
2019 C5 = 2018 Hypersoft
Supersoft and Super-hard have no close equivalent in 2019.
James Neutron (@phillyspur)
3rd October 2019, 19:15
Thank you.
Sensord4notbeingafanboi (@peartree)
3rd October 2019, 17:07
Hardest compounds only, natural for suzuka, also natural for merc to bring the fewest softs of all top 3. Suzuka is ferraris acid test c1 c2 and c3 have highlighted their relatively low downforce. I expect vettel to struggle, he hasn’t performed well on the hard tyres as well.