– Pirelli informed the eleven Formula 1 teams today, Thursday, which tire compounds the supplier will bring to the track for the tripleheader Baku/Sepang/Singapore starting at the end of September.
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Not surprisingly, the manufacturer chooses the nominally softest compounds C3, C4, and C5 for the two tricky street circuits, as is often the case on street tracks. While in Singapore exactly the same tires as last year will be used, a slightly harder choice is made for Azerbaijan.
However, this is unavoidable because the choice from the 2025 season is simply no longer possible: back then, the softest C6 tire was used, which Pirelli removed before the current 2026 Formula 1 season.
Therefore, in Canada and Monaco, a different choice without the C6 had to be made, as would be the case in Imola, should the track be allowed to host the Qatar Grand Prix at the end of the season as expected.
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At the Bahrain Grand Prix, which will be held from October 2 to 4 in Sepang, the medium compound selection consisting of C2, C3, and C4 will be used. Compared to all other circuits on the World Championship calendar, the track in Malaysia places a medium load on the tires.
The asphalt in Kuala Lumpur is particularly rough and has not been resurfaced since the last Formula 1 race in 2017. According to Pirelli, the decision not to choose the hardest compounds aims to reduce the lap time difference between a one-stop and a two-stop strategy and thus promote a greater variety of potential race strategies.
For the other new race at the Madrid circuit, the Italians also selected the medium compounds for the weekend.
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