Brazilian Grand Prix winners Red Bull have chosen more sets of soft tyres for the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi next week.
F1’s official tyre supplier Pirelli has selected its softest available tyres for the race at Yas Marina. They are two stages softer than the rubber used at Interlagos last weekend.Red Bull has chosen nine sets for each of its drivers, one more than Mercedes and Ferrari. Toro Rosso and Williams are the only other teams to have done the same as Red Bull.
While Red Bull have only selected the mandatory single set of hard tyres for each of its drivers, Mercedes and Ferrari have each picked an extra set, for Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc respectively. This will give them the opportunity to evaluate how the tyre works in practice and still have a new set for each of its drivers in the race.
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2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix tyre selections
| Driver | Team | Hard (C3) | Medium (C4) | Soft (C5) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Alexander Albon | Red Bull | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Daniel Riccairdo | Renault | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Romain Grosjean | Haas | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Carlos Sainz Jnr | McLaren | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Lando Norris | McLaren | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Sergio Perez | Racing Point | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Lance Stroll | Racing Point | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Kimi Raikkonen | Alfa Romeo | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Antonio Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Daniil Kvyat | Toro Rosso | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Pierre Gasly | Toro Rosso | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| George Russell | Williams | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| Robert Kubica | Williams | 1 | 3 | 9 |
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Chaitanya
20th November 2019, 3:55
Very interesting selection among top 3 teams.
Nitzo (@webtel)
20th November 2019, 6:29
I am glad we have forgotten/moved on from about Ultra soft, supersoft,etc. Only a matter of time before we forget about C1 to C5. Its so much easier now..not just for us loyal fans but also those casual fans.
I also have to admit that the F1 theme by Brian Tyler which was derided by many including me when it was launched in early 2018, is a tune that i keep humming regularly now.
Phylyp (@phylyp)
20th November 2019, 7:01
@webtel – I’m with you there. I don’t miss the needless complexity of 7 (or is it 8, or 6 now?) compounds, and I appreciate the simplicity of three “relative” compounds that are brought to each race weekend. All that matters to me now is whether drivers are on a softer/harder tyre, or the same tyre, in terms of how they battle and manage their stints. And the simplified colour scheme is easier to read, without looking like a pride flag.
It begs the question – in the quest to be the pinnacle of motorsport, are there other areas of the sport that are needlessly complicated, and which could bear simplification without diluting the quality of the sport? Or is this just a sign that talk of tyres were weighing in too heavily in commentary in the past, and that has come down somewhat? (Without detracting from the fact that pampering these switched-on/off tyres continues to be a sad reality).
(Also, congratulations on the CotD in the round-up, it would indeed be an achievement welcomed by many, for many reasons)
Nitzo (@webtel)
21st November 2019, 6:00
@phylyp
No doubt the sport is over complicating itself with the needless use of ‘gimmickery’.
Simplification only lends to increasing the base and interest of all stakeholders. I am happy that things are changing for the good. They have to, to ensure that the progress is sustainable.
Thanks and Cheers mate.