Formula 1’s eagerness to prevent a repeat of last year’s processional Monaco Grand Prix has led it to take the highly unusual step of implementing a special rule for this venue only.
The series hopes that by forcing drivers to use three sets of tyres during a race instead of one, it might create more uncertainty and even changes of position. Whether that happens, and how contrived an outcome it produces, remains to be seen.But while the concept of the rule is straightforward, there are some important details which could produce unexpected outcomes. And teams’ wily strategists will be on the lookout for any opportunity to exploit unintended consequences of the untested new regulations.
What the rule says
The key points of the rule are as follows:
- Each driver must use at least three different sets of tyres during the grand prix, instead of the usual two
- As usual, drivers must use at least two different tyre compounds, such as soft and medium
- Drivers do not have to comply with the requirement to use two different tyre compounds if they use either of the wet weather tyre specifications: the intermediate or the full wet
- The penalties for drivers who fail to comply with the rule have been revised. As before, a driver who finishes the race without using the required number of tyre sets will be disqualified. However if the race is suspended and cannot be restarted, a driver who has only used two sets will receive a 30 second time penalty and a driver who has only used one will be penalised a minute
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No mandatory pit stops
As is often the case in Formula 1, what the rule does not say is as significant as what it does say. In this case, drivers are only being required to change tyres, not to make pit stops.
If that scenario happened this year, at the race restart drivers would still have one mandatory pit stop to fulfil. Of course if a second red flag incident then occured, they could complete their obligation to change tyres, but this is highly unlikely, even at a track as narrow and punishing as Monaco.
Wet races are affected too
Previously, F1’s mandatory tyre change rule has had no bearing on wet races. As noted above, once drivers use a set of intermediate or wet weather tyres, they no longer have to use two different dry-weather tyre compounds.
However that won’t be the case in Monaco. Under the new rule, even if a driver uses a set of intermediate or wet weather tyres during the Monaco race, they must still use three separate sets of tyres.
Strategy implications
As always, teams will hope to get their mandatory tyre changes done in a way which costs them as little time as possible. That means hanging on as long as they can in the hope of a Safety Car period, a Virtual Safety Car period or a red flag. Changing tyres under red flags costs nothing, while changing tyres under either type of Safety Car costs less time than doing it under green flag running.
Under the previous rules, teams essentially had two tyre strategy choices in Monaco: Start on the softs and pit when a gap opens in the traffic, or gamble by starting on the mediums, try to run longer than the cars ahead and hope to benefit from a mid-race Safety Car. But the knowledge they will have to make two pits stops will surely make starting on medium tyres even less attractive, as it brings with it the possibility a driver starting behind on soft rubber might nip ahead at the start.
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The first place to look for strategy developments in the race will be the back of the field. Last year showed drivers can easily cover a full race distance even on the softest tyre, which will be the medium this year. The new C6 soft will probably go the distance too as tyre degradation in Monaco is so unusually low.
But under that situation would the driver in the penultimate place pre-empt that move and do the same? And the driver ahead of them, or any others up to the points positions with little to lose?
Even if there isn’t a first-lap Safety Car, as teams know they will have to pit twice instead of once, those running at or near the rear may still consider early pit stops. The rate at which the field spreads out over the opening laps can make this an option worth considering, and Haas did exactly this with Esteban Ocon on the first lap at Imola last week.
Any loopholes?
The expression ‘give an inch and they’ll take a mile’ is inadequate for F1 teams: a millimetre of wiggle room in the regulations is more than adequate for them to find an exploit. If there’s a way for them to turn this untested rule to their advantage, they’ll find it.
However some potential dodges are already covered off by the rules. For example, could a team fulfil the requirement to use three sets of tyres by pitting a car, replacing the tyres, then replacing them again with a third set and sending them on their way?
No, because the rules define what it means to “use” a set of tyres. “Tyres fitted in the pit lane will be deemed to have been used once the car’s timing transponder has shown that it has left the pit lane with these tyres fitted.” Popping them on and off in the pit box therefore doesn’t count.
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Less of a loophole, but more of a tactical grey area, is teams using one car to hold up other cars for the benefit of the car ahead. This has happened under the current rules, notably with Haas in Jeddah last year.
For example, if a team qualifies in 10th and 11th, the second of the two drivers could be used to back up the chasing field and create a gap for the driver ahead to pit into. This was already possible under the previous rules, but the added complexity of the new regulations could make it a more attractive option.
How teams might try to exploit the rule for their best advantage will depend largely on how the cards fall in qualifying and at the start. What is certain is this year’s Monaco Grand Prix will be less about who can master the driving challenge of this track, and more about who can avoid tripping up while satisfying an arbitrary new tactical requirement.
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2025 Monaco Grand Prix
- Norris predicts his Monaco pole record should stand “for a very long time”
- Bearman is right: Formula 1 should let Monaco be Monaco
- Wurz’s proposed Monaco track changes would make ‘1 to 5%’ difference – Sainz
- Bortoleto claims his “put him in the wall” radio message was taken out of context
- I deserved penalty, deliberate rule breaking ‘should never be allowed’ – Russell
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
22nd May 2025, 8:16
Wonder what woudl happen if you pit after lap 1, get one stop out of the way, run in clean free air, and hope for a SC for the second stop. Would that be good enough
Jere (@jerejj)
22nd May 2025, 8:39
Definitely because pitting under SC neutralization is fully permitted in any case.
Keith Campbell (@keithedin)
22nd May 2025, 9:33
@fer-no65 I expect most cars at the rear of the field (maybe 16th and back) will pit at least once at the start of the race, or maybe twice to get their stops out of the way entirely. Then at least one of those cars will have free air for a good chunk of the race until likely someone ahead pits to prevent the ‘undercut’. If there’s an early safety car, then double stopping when you’re running outside of the points seems like a no-brainer, since it will save you around 50 seconds of race time. What the leaders do will be dependent on what those behind are doing as usual, since they can’t afford to pit into traffic.
Best case scenario, maybe the leaders will actually push to create gaps behind them rather than the usual parking of the bus and waiting for drivers behind to pit for the undercut, which then gives the leaders a gap to pit into.
Keith Campbell (@keithedin)
22nd May 2025, 9:39
Edit – Just checked the stats and Formula1.com says the pit stop time loss average is 19.2 seconds, so my comment above should be around 38 seconds of time for two stops. Also, if anyone’s interested the safety car probability is shown as 57% for full safety car and 43% for a VSC, though I don’t know how far back those stats are taken from.
az
22nd May 2025, 17:44
Definitely this! It would be funny to see all cars pitting because the previous one has pitted and there is a small window to keep the position and get rid of one mandatory tyre change
Jere (@jerejj)
22nd May 2025, 8:38
Firstly, only using one set would mean zero pit stops even normally, but regarding the relevant points:
Of course, the two-stop minimum could also be achieved by returning to the first set.
However, no team would do so even under normal circumstances because doing so wouldn’t give them any sporting benefit whatsoever, unless they only have two viable sets left for lengthy stint use in the race, which is possible for top 10 qualifiers (unless qualifying is wet, which probably won’t materialize in the end like on the Miami GP race day).
I thought this one-off requirement was only applicable to dry conditions like the standard one, even though what happened last year wouldn’t necessarily happen in wet conditions in any case, not to mention teams tend to avoid the full wet at all costs, so another set of intermediates would be better as opposted to an extra full wet set, not that rain is likely to affect anyway.
Nevertheless, all this is because of a clearly isolated scenario of red-flagging on the opening lap in Monaco, which is far from being a regular thing, not to mention that on-track overtaking still won’t increase, but only overtaking for a position via pit stops, if anything.
More pushing on the limit might occur because the need for a single set to last for an extremely lengthy stint is absent, but that’s about it.
Tommy Scragend
22nd May 2025, 22:43
No it couldn’t. The regulation is that each car must use three sets of tyres, not make two stops. So returning to the first set does not comply.
Simon
23rd May 2025, 0:11
Agreed
Patrick (@anunaki)
22nd May 2025, 9:48
Can you come in after the formation lap, change tyres and start from the pitlane?
Wer
22nd May 2025, 14:29
Sure you can, but it won’t count as a pit-stop since the race has not even started yet.
Although I’m not sure if it’s allowed to even change tyres between the qualification and race start in the first place. It used to be a rule, I don’t if it still is.
Ben
22nd May 2025, 14:34
I don’t think so.
As the rule states “during the Grand Prix” I don’t think the formation lap would count as the race hasn’t officially started yet. I could be wrong, but it seems like that’s been covered off.
asz
22nd May 2025, 10:12
Getting the pit stops out of the way early is also beneficial if, though the probability is small, “the race is suspended and cannot be restarted” soon afterwards. You immediately gain a minute on everyone who’s been driving to a normal race strategy.
Bob
22nd May 2025, 13:19
With Monaco lap times being not much more than a minute you’d have to be almost getting lapped to not gain places.
And often a red flag is preceded by safety car which bunches the field; certainly possible to jump from last to first if you were the only one not penalised
Philip Roden
22nd May 2025, 10:19
Hopefully this rule hang will be enough to make this one interesting. I wonder if the teams in the bottom have of the grid will split strategy and pit their second drivers lap 1 and hang out their first drivers in the hope of pitting under an early safety car – or if the early pit stops will prove too much of an advantage for all.
tielemst
22nd May 2025, 10:27
I can’t see this providing a better race at all. The only thing it might do is shake up the standings. Overtaking will not get any easier, so while the race result may have some surprises, the racing will still be non existent. But hey, when the front runners are stuck behind Pierre Gasly for 23 laps Liberty will sell it as great racing and entertainment value, right?
GechiChan (@gechichan)
23rd May 2025, 7:19
I disagree. I think this will create a bit more chaos and some interesting strategies could turn the race on its head if SCs are involved. They needed to do something to make the race more watchable… because for me, in recent years, I only watch the qualy in Monaco and not the race.
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
22nd May 2025, 10:34
I’d love to see a short film on the logistics of tyres over the course of an F1 season. They’re not small things even when not on the rim. Producing nearly 4,000 tyres and carting them around the world, in a sport that boasts about net zero ambitions seems a bit insane. Presumably teams allocation of wet and intermediates get shipped to Bahrain, Abu Dhabi etc ‘just in case’ and then sit about until they’re ready to be packed up again moved on.
So if Monaco is wet, teams will have to use three sets of wet tyres in a race when one set could easily do the whole race. People have to make those tyres, drive them for miles, lift them, carry them, log them, put them on a plane, put them on ship, put them back in a truck, log them again, take pictures of graining, make sure it’s the same set and evidence to the FIA, back on the plane, repeat. I believe they ultimately end up in Romania and are ‘re-purposed’. I wonder what percentage get back to Slatina, covered tens of thousands of miles and were never used?
We treated tyres like they’re M&M’s and you just grab a handful. Tyres as they are now, must be a massive faff and a waste of people’s time and resources.
MichaelN
22nd May 2025, 15:26
It is, and not just a bit.
F1’s tyre usage is impossible to justify. There’s no reason to have three sets of tyres that thus average 100 kilometers per use, or not even that in Monaco. It’s a spec part, there is no competition. It’d be very easy to just drop this relic of the days where competition existed in the tyre world and use a single set for the whole race.
The environmental pollution caused by tyres isn’t a super exciting subject, but it’s real and it’s currently getting reprieve mostly because one of the main contributors is the enormous weight of BEVs, which is something that governments and (most) environmental groups want to promote. But it should go without saying that these two tonne behemoths are not only more dangerous to other road users, they’re also putting more strain on the tyres – and indeed the roads.
GongTong (@gongtong)
22nd May 2025, 21:24
We’re often told that pitstops only exist now to give the tyre supplier a bit of attention and marketing.
We’re also told that we have one tyre supplier because the tyre war days were bad. Those of us that remember them mostly agree, I think.
We could combat these issues and the huge problem of tyre waste by introducing regs similar to the engines. Significantly reduce the number of sets available across the season…
Personally I’d love to see them have a single set of hards and a single set of softs for the entire 7500 odd kilometres.
Imagine the stress of wondering if my guy has taken too much out of his tyres early on… In a SEASON not just a race.
Jack
22nd May 2025, 10:38
The one rule that needs changing (for all races) is allowing the mandatory compound change(s) to be done under red flag conditions.
If you need to change tyres under red flag it should be the same compound, if you change compound under a red flag then you must drive through the pit lane.
Jere (@jerejj)
22nd May 2025, 11:27
I’m still against any sort of restrictions regarding tyre changing under red flag conditions, let alone banning them altogether.
Even requiring the switch to the same compound set as before the stoppage would be easier said than done because not every driver might necessarily have any set of said compound left by that point, especially among the top 10 qualifiers, who sometimes have only one set of each medium & hard left for a race to begin with, which would make things difficult if a given driver happened to be using either medium or hard pre-stoppage.
S Arkazam
22nd May 2025, 23:48
That’s incorrect!
All cars start with the same amount of tyres available for the race. And they decide themselves which compounds.
The only difference is that Q3 qualifiers might have less virgin sets left.
LS
22nd May 2025, 11:28
I think they should just change the wording of the rules so that the mandatory tyre compound change has to be done under green, yellow, sc or vsc conditions. This would allow any tyre change under reds, but that wouldn’t count towards the mandatory compound change
Jere (@jerejj)
22nd May 2025, 12:37
LS I could be okay with this.
Simon
23rd May 2025, 0:12
Glad for you, I guess…
minnis (@minnis)
22nd May 2025, 19:41
I think Formula E’s red flag rules are perfect – all drivers line up in order in the pit lane. If teams want to do anything to the car (tyre changes, replace the front wing etc.), that’s fine – but the car is pulled out of the line up and, once work is done, they join the back of the line.
Biggsy
22nd May 2025, 11:00
If this isn’t the most idiotic rule yet, then it sure must be right there in the top 1.
If a driver is just driving their race, and it gets suspended, they 60 sec time penalty, for no fault of their own. While someone who pulled a howler, and pitted on lap one, gets effectively 30 sec on them.
F1 has had this habit of putting a band aid over a sinkhole, but this one is too much even for F1’s standards.
Any rule/concept that is too complicated, is a rule that is poorly thought out in the first place.
It’s one of the axioms of architecture, design, science etc. that has stood the test of time since the bronze age.
Red Andy (@red-andy)
22nd May 2025, 11:32
The pace around Monaco is generally so slow that it would be easy for someone to pit very early (say, in the first few laps) and then cruise back up to the back of the pack before the “normal” pit window opens.
Biggsy
22nd May 2025, 13:15
I guess that would be possible if the gaps remain fairly small.
If the gap between the cars is 1 sec on average, then it would be around 20 sec from 1st to last.
Pit stop is probably more than that, so in theory, it should work.
But if the prediction doesn’t turn out to be right, and the leading pack starts pulling away, pitting from 5th, would get you no further than 5th when all the cars have pitted, but you’d be on a 20+ older tyres than those around you.
BMW P85 V10
22nd May 2025, 11:35
Can you change tires twice in 1 pitsstop? Do you have to complete a lap on each set of tires you use?
Just drive half a meter and re-change the tires again.
tielemst
22nd May 2025, 11:43
No, the transponder needs to have signalled that the car has left the pit lane. So a minimum of one lap is mandatory.
Mark Sinclair
23rd May 2025, 8:55
Change tyres, drive forward 3 feet – so transponders say car has left pit lane.
Pit crew push the car back and change again.
That will work….. won’t it..?
LosD (@losd)
22nd May 2025, 12:34
Did you even read the article?
BMW P85 V10
22nd May 2025, 13:20
I did quickly.
Jon
22nd May 2025, 12:07
It just does not feel like F1 any more
Ferdi
22nd May 2025, 12:47
I am afraid that ship has sailed some time ago already. Current leadership is not so much interested in F1 apart from its exploitation.
Tony Mansell (@tonymansell)
22nd May 2025, 13:22
Yeh whereas CVC were absolute legends. It feels exactly like F1 and it has done since 1968 when they put a Gold Leaf sticker on a Lotus not that i go back that far but im mildly surprised everytime i read ‘the game has gone’ cliche
anon
22nd May 2025, 20:16
@tonymansell it’s because individuals like Ferdi seem to belong to a particular group of fans whose main interest in the sport is to moan about how the sport doesn’t match the fantasy world that they seem to think once existed.
grat
22nd May 2025, 14:07
What does F1 “feel like”?
Front engined cars, no wings, exposed cockpits? Rear engined cars, minimal aero?
Why do people want the “pinnacle of motorsports” to be stuck in the past?
Jon
22nd May 2025, 19:33
Indy car crossed with mario carts with a dash wacky races.
osnola
22nd May 2025, 12:22
Interesting part i missed in this review is the fact the pits in monaco are very narrow and with a lot of cars coming in and out it will be extremely busy there. Unsafe releases looming and even pitcrashes not unlikely.
tielemst
22nd May 2025, 12:49
Liberty is keeping their fingers crossed. Great entertainment!
Frankie Madear
22nd May 2025, 14:24
That photo feels off. The pit crew come from the driver’s right side. When I flipped the image, the curve of the track is backwards.
I went in 1999 and had pit access. It was really cool.
Tommy Scragend
22nd May 2025, 22:48
Not for the last twenty years. The pit lane was widened in 2004 and the pit boxes are now on the back of the pit lane, facing the harbour not the start/finish straight. The photo is correct.
Ben
22nd May 2025, 14:45
This could spice things up or it could be a complete mess, or both!
I can see a situation where someone gets lucky with a late red flag, safety car or VSC. How late are the leaders going to risk their final stops? Maybe they will just wait til the last lap, but the chance of them being caught out with the wrong track position would make that very risky.
I also wonder if anyone will play the team game. I’d imagine everyone will want to pit at the first safetycar but a team could plan to stay out (or just go longer than anyone else) with both cars and then sacrifice one to drive around so slowly that the lead car can pull a pitstop gap. They could even do this twice as it’d be easy to keep a car behind even driving seconds off the pace per sector at some parts of the track.
Either way it’ll add some interest to what is usually very boring, so lets wait and see.
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
22nd May 2025, 15:16
That is exactly what I was thinking. If Yuki qualifies 18th, he’ll have lost touch with the front pack anyway within a few laps. But if he’s 8th or so on the grid. Red Bull strategists can move him around like a chess piece, at times going as slowly as needed.
Red Bull might complain that Max is often compromised in strategy because he’s by himself. This might be the one race this season where McLaren know they can’t come out behind him. Yuki could just run his first set of tyres for all but the last two laps.
Ben
22nd May 2025, 16:59
Yeah that’s a great point. This seems like something which has been overlooked.
The FIA trusting teams to play fair is a dangerous game. If alpine, Williams, Aston etc have both cars in the top 10 would they really be against sacrificing one car for a race win?
I mean they could go one step further and not pit their second driver at all. They’d likely end up out of the points anyway so what would it matter if they were disqualified?
Biggsy
22nd May 2025, 16:54
From all you’ve listed in the comment, I’d say it’ll add some farce to what is usually a very unique race.
dot_com (@dot_com)
22nd May 2025, 17:00
I wonder if there is a long safety car people, if teams will make two pit stops. Change tires, send them out, straight back in again for new tires all under the SC.
ferrox glideh (@ferrox-glideh)
22nd May 2025, 17:27
@dot_com Comment of the day. Brilliant.
An Sionnach
22nd May 2025, 20:48
Good idea, although we’re more likely to get a red flag or VSC in Monaco. The last few safety cars at Monaco were leading the field around for a rolling restart after a red flag.
An Sionnach
22nd May 2025, 17:23
…so if there are two red flags at Lando’s expense, there will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth…
roadrunner (@roadrunner)
22nd May 2025, 21:21
I kind of hate myself for it, but I’m somehow looking forward to that race. These one stopper with the current horrible Pirelli tires are so tiresome and the teams have all the same simulations that will lead to them going for the same strategy (Imola was an exciting exception though).
Now we get something completely new and there will be teams who fail completely (Ferrari, please don’t do anything stupid) and others who will absolutely ace it. So why not once try it in Monaco. And let’s be honest, the mandatory one pitstop rule is exactly as artificial, but only worn out.
Lauri (@f1lauri)
22nd May 2025, 22:00
Loophole: Start with inters, box on lap one and put your only set of dry tyres on. Drive until finish line.
Alternative: Drive until last lap, put inters on, finish on inters.
“Drivers do not have to comply with the requirement to use two different tyre compounds if they use either of the wet weather tyre specifications: the intermediate or the full wet”
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
23rd May 2025, 3:13
Aha, that’s clever! You lose like 5-6 seconds a lap on inters on a dry track, you might be able to keep someone behind for a lap, you just really need to survive the chicane after the tunnel basically, best overtaking spot.
Lauri (@f1lauri)
22nd May 2025, 22:03
edit: Won’t work as you’d probably still need to use three sets as “Each driver must use at least three different sets of tyres during the grand prix, instead of the usual two”
Tommy Scragend
22nd May 2025, 22:50
Correct. If an intermediate or wet tyre is used, they no longer have to use two different compounds but still need to use three different sets of tyres. So even if it is inter conditions throughout, they will still need to change tyres twice.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
23rd May 2025, 3:16
Ah, damn, that’s true, basically the wet exception is that you can use inters, then new set of inters, then new set of inters on a typical wet race nowadays, without too much water, but still have to pit twice.
Karen
22nd May 2025, 22:14
Perhaps they should make tyres a bit more robust – still have 5 compounds + inters + wets – but give teams 6 sets of each compound for the whole year. They can decide which tyres to use when. Keep the two compounds per race.
It would add a lot more spice. If a driver flat spotted the tyre, it would cause issues for a lot longer than coming in for a new tyre