Why Imola F1 race is the acid test for radical tire plan

Why F1 teams' 2026 weight panic is wrong

There are plenty of justifiable criticisms of and doubts about Formula 1's 2026 regulations, but concern about the minimum weight rule should not be one of them.The minimum weight for 2026 is currently set as "724kg plus the nominal tyre mass", a result of next year's Pirelli tyres still being in development. Currently, the minimum weight is 800kg, and one of the aims of next year's regulations has been to reduce this. Red Bull team principal Ch…

Why Imola F1 race is the acid test for radical tyre plan

Pirelli’s greatest challenge since becoming Formula 1’s sole tyre supplier in 2011 has been to reconcile its brief – to deliver tyres whose performance drops off sharply beyond a given point – with the drivers’ desire to have rubber which they can push on through an entire stint. These two requirements might not be mutually exclusive but the ‘sweet spot’ between them is hard to ...Keep reading

Why Imola F1 race is the acid test for radical tire plan

Pirelli’s greatest challenge since becoming Formula 1’s sole tire supplier in 2011 has been to reconcile its brief – to deliver tires whose performance drops off sharply beyond a given point – with the drivers’ desire to have rubber which they can push on through an entire stint. These two requirements might not be mutually exclusive but the ‘sweet spot’ between them is hard to ...Keep reading

The first quarter of the season is now over and, with the exception of a brief incursion into Canada in mid-June, the European season begins and continues until the Italian Grand Prix on 7 September. The Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna and Made in Italy takes place on the circuit of Imola, named in memory of Enzo Ferrari and his son Dino. This part of the season, which includes the majority of the races considered to be classics of the championship…