The Finnish driver tested the softer compounds in the range, from C3 to C6, in a similar programme to that carried out by Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto on Tuesday. Most of the work focused on the hardest compound within that range, which is most often chosen for race weekends during the season.

After several performance runs, each preceded by a warm-up lap to bring the tyres up to the correct temperature, Bottas completed the evaluation of the C3 compound with a series of long runs.

Bottas carried out a similar run plan, including performance runs, with the remaining compounds – chosen based on the tests conducted by Bortoleto the previous day – to analyse performance differences in terms of lap time and degradation levels.

In the late afternoon, Frederik Vesti (who participated in FP1 at the Mexico Grand Prix for Mercedes) took over the car, testing several different tyre structures throughout 10-lap runs.

The best time set by the Danish driver was 1m19.657s on lap 41, while Bottas set a benchmark of 1m18.204s on lap 109. These lap times, however, are not relevant to each other, as each driver was following a different programme.

Over the course of the day, a total of 161 laps were completed (112 laps for Bottas and 49 for Vesti) covering 693 kilometres, in track conditions very similar to those of the previous day with asphalt temperature peaking at 49°C. A total of 1,278 kilometres were covered at the Hermanos Rodríguez circuit during the two days of testing.

The next test for the 2026 tyres is scheduled for Tuesday, December 9, in Abu Dhabi, at the official test with all the teams after the final grand prix of the season.

Fresh from his 10th place at the Mexican Grand Prix last weekend, Gabriel Bortoleto took to the track today (Tuesday 28 October) driving a mule car based on the current Sauber C45.

Pirelli tested the softer tyres in the new range throughout the day, from C3 to C6. In the morning, the Brazilian driver sampled all the options available, starting with the softest compounds before moving onto some harder tyres to take advantage of the progressive rise in track temperature.

The first hours targeted performance runs, which were useful for Pirelli’s engineers to assess the gaps between the different compounds in terms of lap time. In the afternoon, the best options identified during the morning were put to the test with longer runs up to 15 laps, in order to measure degradation levels.

Gabriel Bortoleto completed 136 laps today, covering 585.344 kilometres in total. His best time of 1m19.089s was set on lap 45. Weather conditions remained stable throughout the day, with clear skies and track temperatures that peaked at 51°C.

The Pirelli test will continue tomorrow, with Valtteri Bottas driving a mule car based on the 2024 Mercedes W15. The Finn will follow a run plan similar to that carried out by Bortoleto today.

In the morning, Leclerc was only able to do 25 laps, all on intermediates, the quickest in a time of 1’34”914. In the afternoon, Zhou ran on intermediates and extreme wets, before managing to fit in a handful of runs on slicks. The Chinese driver completed 75 laps, the best in 1’22”012.

“Unfortunately, the weather didn’t help,” commented Mario Isola, Pirelli Director of Motorsport. “That’s a shame, as Mugello is not just a wonderful circuit, but also very demanding on tyres and it would have been useful to get in some consistent running to define the hardest compounds. Now we will have to finish the work of analysing the little data we collected over these two days and cross-reference it with that from previous sessions, in order to reach the necessary conclusions. As for the softer compounds, we still have two more days of testing after the Mexico City Grand Prix to finalise their homologation. If we want to look for positives, at least we were able to test the wet weather tyres on a real track, gathering data and insights which will be useful for medium to long term development. Finally, I’d like to thank Haas and Scuderia Ferrari for their cooperation over these past two days.”

Testing continues tomorrow at Mugello when Guanyu Zhou and Charles Leclerc will be behind the wheel for Scuderia Ferrari, each driving part of the day in a mule car based on the SF-25.

The wet track, caused by the rain which fell on the circuit throughout the morning, gave the chance to test in real-life conditions a solution for the Intermediate tyres that had already been tested at Fiorano – when the track was artificially dampened thanks to the irrigation system at the Italian circuit. Today’s work, other than evaluating the best options for the C4, C5 and C6 compounds, will thus also allow for a deeper analysis of the crossover phase between intermediates and slicks.

Carlos Sainz completed 57 laps, with a best time of 1’22’’108 on lap 24. Isack Hadjar stopped the clock at 1’23’’825 on lap 30 of 56. The ambient temperatures were within the range of 20°C and 25°C, while the tarmac went from 27°C to 32°C.

Adding in the laps completed yesterday, which were all on slick tyres courtesy of the same two drivers plus Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda for Red Bull and Felipe Drugovich for Aston Martin, in these two days of testing at Monza Pirelli has amassed an overall total of 467 laps for a total of 2,705 kilometres.

Today’s testing was limited to the afternoon since, given the unfavourable weather forecast, the two teams involved had accepted bringing forward half a day of dry running to yesterday.

As a result Pirelli has nonetheless managed to collect the necessary data to proceed with the development of the slick compounds to be used next season, which will have to be homologated by December 15.

Williams took to the track with a mule car derived from the current FW47 while the Racing Bulls used a modified version of its VCARB01 from 2024. The modifications to the car were necessary to be able to fit the prototype tyres, which are slightly narrower compared to this year’s tyres, while keeping the same diameter.

The slick tyre testing will return at the end of September to the Mugello circuit and then for two more days after the race weekend in Mexico City. In Italy the harder tyres from the range will be finalised while in Mexico the softer tyres will again be put to the test.

These dates are the last two on Pirelli’s development calendar for 2025 and they will be followed by the usual end-of-season testing scheduled for December in Abu Dhabi.

The original plan for today was that Red Bull would be on track with Verstappen in the morning and Tsunoda in the afternoon, joined by Drugovich in the Aston Martin. However, with storms and heavy rain forecast for tomorrow morning, the schedule was changed.

After the morning session, Williams and Racing Bulls were ready to get through part of their programme ahead of schedule, running Sainz and Hadjar this afternoon. Aston Martin and Williams ran modified versions of their current cars, the AMR25 and FW47 respectively, adapted to accept the prototype tyres. Red Bull used a mule car based on the 2023 RB19 and Racing Bulls did the same with a VCARB01 from 2024.

The overall programme for this test is focussed on finalising what slick compounds to use for next season. In fact, the tyre construction was homologated on 1^st September, as per the regulations. The test in Monza is the seventh session organised by Pirelli so far this year to develop the new tyres which, while sticking with an 18 inch diameter are slightly narrower, by 25 mm at the front and 30 mm at the rear. 

In the morning, the reigning world champion got through his programme, doing 59 laps before handing over to Tsunoda, who did 63 in the afternoon. Verstappen’s best time was a 1’24”117, set on his 25^th lap, while the Japanese driver posted a 1’23’’826 on his 30th lap. In the Aston Martin, Drugovich completed 118 laps over the course of the day, with a best time of 1'23''792 set on lap 37.

Carlos Sainz did 49 laps in the Williams with a best time of 1’22’’388 set on lap 30. Isack Hadjar completed 65 laps, his best being a 1’23’’951 set on lap 41. The times have no comparative value as they are linked to the specific programme assigned to each driver.

All teams tried the softest compounds in the range. Racing Bulls and Williams ran the C4, C5 and C6, while Red Bull Racing and Aston Martin also tried the C3. The programme began with quick lap runs to see the pure performance levels of the various compounds, before switching to longer runs to check the level of degradation. Ambient temperature ranged from 22°C and 27°C while the track varied between 24°C and 40°C.

Inevitably, tomorrow’s programme will depend on the weather. If it only rains in the morning then the slick tyre testing will resume in the afternoon, with just Racing Bulls and Williams on track. If the rain continues into the afternoon, but not too heavily, then Pirelli might take the opportunity to also test the Cinturato Full Wet and Intermediate tyres. That would produce some useful data relating to the crossover point between the different compounds.

It was again hot today – between 21 and 29 °C air temperatures, 31 and 53 °C track temperatures – with a similar programme of testing to yesterday. The two drivers at work today – Franco Colapinto for the French team and Charles Leclerc for the Italian team – had a morning plan including short distance comparisons of different prototypes of compounds from C3 to C5 to check their level of overall performance. Then the afternoon was due to focus on long runs to check their performance over longer distances; at this stage, a version of the C2 was also tested over a long run.

The two teams both took to the track with mule cars – which had been adapted to fit the tyres with the 2026 measurements (still with an 18” diameter but 25 mm narrower at the front and 30 mm narrower at the rear) – and both using cars based on the chassis that they are using this season.

Unfortunately the programme was only partially completed because Alpine was forced to interrupt the test when Colapinto went off the track in the first part of the morning session. The car suffered damage which meant that he was unable to return to the track before the end of the session. Up to that moment the Argentine driver had completed 25 laps, with a fastest time of 1’20”270. By contrast Leclerc was able to complete a full programme, ending the day with a total of 144 laps and a fastest time of 1’19’’407.

“These have been two useful days for making progress with the development of our compounds for next season, given that we are now entering the home straight,” said Mario Isola, the head of Pirelli Motorsport. “The Hungaroring is a demanding track due to its many slow curves and the amount of energy that goes into the tyres on a lap that is rather short. This makes it a challenging place to test tyres, in particular for the compounds that will be central to the 2026 range – which will go from C1 to C6 like this year.

We have collected a lot of data, although it was a pity that we lost some of our potential mileage today when Colapinto went off the track, even though this was not in any way linked to the tyres. As for construction, we have verified our final solutions as far as homologation is concerned, ahead of the regulations coming on September 1. By contrast we now have three further test sessions – in Monza, Mugello and Mexico City – to conclude the development of the compounds, whose homologation is due on December 15.”

On a day marked by ambient temperatures ranging between 21°C and 31°C and track temperatures between 29°C and 56°C, the day’s programme focused on a comparison of various prototypes of the C3, C4 and C5 compounds. In the morning, the drivers carried out short runs to check the performance level of each of these, before switching to longer runs in the afternoon to observe their behaviour over longer distances.

The three teams all ran mule cars, adapted to fit the dimensions of the 2026 tyres which, while retaining the 18” diameter, are 25 mm narrower at the front and 30 at the rear. McLaren and Alpine’s cars were based on their 2023 model, while Racing Bulls used one from last season.

All three drivers on track today had also been at the wheel over the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend: McLaren fielded race winner Lando Norris, in the Racing Bulls was Liam Lawson, while Paul Aron, who had driven in the first free practice session last Friday for Sauber, was behind the wheel of the Alpine.

As for lap times and distances completed, Paul Aron was quickest in 1’18’’789, followed by Lando Norris (1’19’’272) and Liam Lawson (1’19’’510) completing 159, 144 and 143 laps respectively.

Testing continues tomorrow, when Alpine’s current line-up of Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly will both drive the A525. They will be joined by Charles Leclerc at the wheel of a modified Ferrari SF-25.

Lance Stroll was at the wheel of a mule-car based on the Aston Martin AMR25. The Canadian completed a total of 126 laps, the quickest in a time of 1’30”195. For a second day, Gabriel Bortoleto was on driving duty in a Sauber C45, raced by the Swiss team last year, but adapted to fit the 2026 tyres. The Brazilian completed 110 laps, setting a best time of 1’33”188.

"It’s been a really productive, positive couple of days, and a good chance to get more laps under my belt here in Silverstone, which is a track I really enjoy: I would like to thank both the team and Pirelli for this opportunity” commented Gabriel Bortoleto, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber. “We went through our entire programme for both days, and everything went smoothly. It was also important to get an initial feel for the 2026 tyres – as well as supporting Pirelli with our input. I started to build confidence with them, and the improved traction compared to this year’s compounds seems to allow for a cleaner and more controlled throttle application on corner exit."

“We are now in the crucial phase of 2026 tyre development and at Silverstone, we pretty much completed our work on construction,” explained Mario Isola, Pirelli Director of Motorsport. “Now, as usual, we will analyse all the data and reach conclusions prior to homologation, which is due to take place in early September. In addition, we were able to compare the most likely options for the hard compounds on the Silverstone track that is very tough on tyres. We still have more time to complete this, given that the cut-off date stipulated in the regulations is in November. We will conduct further test sessions, starting with one at the Hungaroring on 5 and 6 August, in other words, immediately after the Hungarian Grand Prix. Then there will be a further three sessions, in Monza, Mugello and Mexico City, to help us make the final choices.”

The task of collaborating on this complex and important phase of preparation for next season fell to Aston Martin, who were the first team to test the prototype tyres on track last September in Barcelona, this time joined by Sauber, who were trying this type of tyre for the very first time.

Two Brazilians were driving today: Felipe Drugovich was behind the wheel of the Aston Martin AMR25, while Gabriel Bortoleto was driving the Sauber C45. Both cars were specially adapted to suit the 2026 tyres, which are 25 millimetres narrower at the front and 30 at the rear.

Today’s work focused mainly on a comparison of the latest constructions prior to their being homologated, which is scheduled for this coming 1 September. Drugovich completed 112 laps, the quickest in 1'30''119 and Bortoleto did 110, the best being a 1’ 1’31’’341.

Testing continues tomorrow with Sauber’s young Brazilian still driving, while Canada’s Lance Stroll takes over at Aston Martin. 

Charles Leclerc was driving today and he completed 110 laps, the best in 59”210, set on slicks, while his quickest lap on intermediates was a 1’06”180.

“First of all, I want to thank Ferrari for their hospitality and technical support as well as for the commitment from their drivers,” commented Mario Isola, Pirelli Director of Motorsport. “These two days of testing have been very useful, allowing us to round off the on-track development work for next year’s intermediate and full wet tyres.
Now we will carefully analyse all the data and finalise the definitive solutions. It’s never easy working on the development of rain tyres, because it’s hard to consistently replicate track conditions and temperature also plays an important part. That’s even more the case this year because the mule cars obviously cannot fully replicate the loads and behaviour expected from the cars built to the new 2026 regulations. We had to make the best of the situation and I think we have obtained some interesting results, which, next year, will allow us to provide teams with an improved product, both in terms of performance and the operating window, when compared to the current tyres.”

The next test session for 2026 will take place at Silverstone in the week following the British Grand Prix.

Guanyu Zhou was at the wheel of an SF-25, modified to accommodate the dimensions of the 2026 tyres. The Chinese driver completed 159 laps. His best time of all was a 59”820, set on dry weather tyres while preparing for the day’s work. His best time around the 2.976 kilometre track on intermediate tyres was a 1’07”400. 

Testing continues at this track tomorrow, when Charles Leclerc will be at the wheel.

“Our ongoing test programme is coming to its decisive phase,” explained Pirelli Director of Motorsport, Mario Isola. “In fact, by 1^st September, the constructions will have to be homologated, while for the compounds we have until 1^st December. Here in Barcelona, a track that provides a stern test for tyres, we evaluated the hardest compounds in the range and accumulated valuable data that we will verify at the Silverstone test in July following the British Grand Prix.  I wish to thank the three teams and their respective drivers that worked with us during this test. We know it’s not straightforward to stay on at a track for a further two days following a triple-header which ended last Sunday.”

The next development test for 2026 will take place on 19 and 20 June at the Fiorano track where, over the two days, Scuderia Ferrari will be testing wet weather prototype tyres.

At the wheel of the Mercedes was George Russell, while Isack Hadjar drove the Racing Bulls, both of them having secured good results in Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix. They were driving mule cars based on their respective teams’ 2024 cars. By the end of the day, the Englishman had completed 136 laps, the quickest in 1'16''920, while the Frenchman did 146 laps, the best being a 1'18''334. Mercedes will continue testing tomorrow, this time with Andrea Kimi Antonelli, joined by Oracle Red Bull Racing and their Japanese driver, Yuki Tsunoda.

Today’s programme focused on comparison testing between various extreme wet and intermediate tyre prototypes and, again today, this took place on the 2.630 kilometre-long National layout at the English circuit, artificially soaked using water tankers. Russell completed 80 laps, the quickest in 46’’190, bringing the total distance covered over the two days to 481 kilometres.

“First of all, I want to thank Mercedes and its drivers for their cooperation. To get straight back on track immediately off the back of a Grand Prix on the other side of the Atlantic is a major commitment and we truly appreciate it,” commented Mario Isola, Pirelli Motorsport Director. “It was a very useful test, because it allowed us to gather valuable insights on our rain tyres, to add to those acquired in Paul Ricard back in January. With the intermediates we were able to confirm that the on-track development matches our expectations, while the results with the full wets were inconclusive and will need to now be thoroughly analysed in the coming days to continue refining the product for next season.”

The next test session to prepare for 2026, this time focussed on the slicks, is scheduled for 3 and 4 June at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit, in the days following the Spanish Grand Prix. Mercedes will once again be on hand, this time joined by Racing Bulls. The next wet weather tyre test will take place on 19 and 20 June, when just Ferrari will be on hand at their own Fiorano track, which is equipped with an artificial track irrigation system.

The English circuit’s 2.630 kilometre National track layout was artificially watered using water trucks. Antonelli completed 103 laps, the quickest in a time of 47”560. During the first part of the day, the work focussed on the intermediate tyres, before switching to extreme wets in the afternoon.

“Another very useful day for the development of the 2026 tyres,” commented Mario Isola, Pirelli’s Director of Motorsport. “Almost 2,700 kilometres completed, we have been able to gather a significant amount of data to take forward in our programme. I would like to really thank the drivers and teams who extended their stay at the Bahrain track by a further three days at what is such a busy time, with less than two weeks to go to the first race. In Sakhir we continued with a comparison of different types of construction and compound, the latter at the hardest end of the range, to suit the characteristics of this track. Now, our colleagues in R&D will analyse the information carefully and provide useful indications so that we can continue to improve the product for the next generation of cars.”

The next test session for the 2026 tyres will take place at Silverstone (UK) on 7 and 8 May: Mercedes will be on track, working on the development of the intermediate and extreme wet tyres. Formula 1 returns to Bahrain for the 21st edition of this Grand Prix over the weekend of 11 to 13 April.
 

The aim is the same since the start of this year, to develop the new generation of 18” tyres, with a smaller diameter and narrower by 25 millimetres at the front and 30 at the rear, that will be used as from 2026.

Today’s programme focused on evaluating various different constructions, but with the same compound. Spain’s Carlos Sainz was at the wheel for Williams, completing a total of 116 laps, the fastest in a time of 1’34”740, while Alpine fielded Japanese driver Ryo Hirakawa, who made the trip from the Lusail circuit where last Friday, he had been racing in the 1812 kilometres of Qatar, the opening round of the World Endurance Championship. He completed 131 laps, the best being a 1’35”336. Both cars were specially modified to accommodate the new specification of tyre, based on those used in the 2023 season: the Alpine A523 and the Williams FW45.

Testing continues at this circuit tomorrow, when Paul Aron will drive the Alpine and Alexander Albon the Williams. 
 

Three teams were on track: BWT Alpine F1 Team ran both days, joined yesterday by the McLaren F1 Team and today by the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 TEAM. Today, the Australian Jack Doohan ran a mule car based on the Alpine A523, while Englishman George Russell was at the wheel of a W15, the car he drove last season, adapted to fit the new dimension of tyre. A total of 248 laps were completed, split as follows: 113 for Doohan and 135 for Russell. The two teams ran different programmes so their performance cannot be compared, but for the record, the Australian’s best lap time was a 1’17’’255 and the Englishman posted a 1’17’976.

“Yet another good test in the early days of 2025, thanks to the vital collaboration of the three teams involved,” commented Pirelli’s Director of Motorsport, Mario Isola. “In addition to the data gathered in Paul Ricard and the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit, we now have a great deal of very important information from the Jerez circuit. Even though it has not featured on the championship calendar for many years now, it is still an interesting test bench, partly down to the good weather it enjoys at this time of year. Now we still have one more test session prior to the start of the 2025 season, to bring to an end this initial and crucial phase of working on track. The information gathered so far will allow us to direct our development in an ever more precise fashion for the coming tests.”

Pirelli’s next session will take place at the Sakhir circuit on 2 and 3 March, when Alpine will once again be on track, this time joined by Williams. 

Just like last week in Catalonia, this session was focused on the development of solutions for the slicks in the variety of tyres for 2026. In particular the teams tried out different combinations of constructions and compounds, which ranged from C2 to C4.

As the day progressed Patricio O’Ward took to the track at the wheel of the MCL60 while Pierre Gasly drove the A523 Alpine, both ‘mule’ versions of the cars that competed in the 2023 championship. The Mexican driver racked up a total of 153 laps while the Frenchman completed 157 laps. The fastest laps the drivers recorded in the course of the day were 1’19’’484 for O’Ward and 1’18’’092 per Gasly, though these were far from meaningful marks given the specifics of the different work programmes Pirelli carried out with the two teams.

The test session at the Circuito Angel Nieto will continue tomorrow with a partial change of line-up on track. In accordance with the scheduled programme McLaren will be replaced by the Mercedes mule car driven by George Russell. The Englishman will be on track alongside Alpine for the day’s two sessions: Jack Doohan will be driving for the French team.
 

A total of 300 laps was completed today, 74 by the Monegasque driver, 74 for his British team-mate and 152 for the Australian. Here are the fastest recorded lap times, although they have no real significance given the different work programmes carried out for Pirelli by the two teams: 1'14''971 for Leclerc, 1'16''759 for Hamilton and 1'15''815 for Piastri.

“It was a very useful session, particularly when it came to providing a comparison between the various different constructions for next season, as well as experimenting with some compounds from the harder end of the range,” commented Pirelli Motorsport Director, Mario Isola. “The Barcelona circuit is known as one of the most demanding for the tyres in terms of the energy exerted and degradation, therefore the information we have gathered over these two busy days will be very important for the future development of this generation of tyres. It’s a really demanding start to the year with four test sessions even before the season begins and I want to thank all the teams that are working with us, because we know how busy they are at the moment.”

Following on from last week’s test in Paul Ricard and this one in Barcelona, the team of Pirelli engineers are heading further south next week, for two days of testing at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit, in Andalusia on 12 and 13 February. Alpine will be taking part on both days, while McLaren and Mercedes will do one day each. The final pre-season test will take place at Bahrain’s Sakhir circuit on 2 and 3 March with Alpine and Williams running both days. This same venue will then host the only three day test when all teams will run their 2025 cars prior to the opening round, the Australian Grand Prix. 

Three race drivers were on duty today, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc sharing a modified SF-24, while Lando Norris was at the wheel of the MCL60, specifically adapted to support testing with the FIA Formula 1 World Championship’s sole tyre supplier. Last week’s work for the Pirelli engineers focused on the intermediate and extreme wet tyres and this time the programme centred around development of the slicks. Specifically being tested were various combinations of construction and compound, the latter from the hardest end of the range, from the C1 to the C3, as they are well suited to the Spanish track which is particularly demanding on tyres.

A total of 332 laps was completed: Hamilton doing 87 (best time 1'15''930), Leclerc 86 (1'16''060) and Norris 159 (1'15''215).

Testing at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit continues tomorrow, when Oscar Piastri will drive for McLaren, with Leclerc and Hamilton again in the Ferrari, the former in the morning and the latter in the afternoon.
 

Today and yesterday, the 3.463 kilometre long 2A version of the Le Castellet track was in use. On the first day Oscar Piastri completed 120 laps, with a best time of 1'07''008, while today Lando Norris completed 123 laps, with a best time of 1'07''956. Between them, they covered 840 kilometres, all on a wet track. Yesterday, when it was dry and today, with intermittent rain, the track’s surface was artificially irrigated with water tankers and sprinklers in order to ensure the track conditions were as uniform as possible to allow the most effective evaluation of the test data gathered with the various prototypes.

"The first test session of 2025 proved very useful,” commented Mario Isola, Pirelli Director of Motorsport. “When testing wet weather tyres it’s not easy to consistently reproduce the same track conditions to get reliable data, but over these past two days we were able to acquire plenty of information that will be vital when it comes to defining the new intermediate and extreme wet tyres. It’s going to be a very busy start to the season for those of our engineers working on development: after this test at Paul Ricard, we have a further two test sessions in the coming two weeks. Both of them are in Spain and will focus on dry weather tyres. On 4 and 5 February, McLaren and Ferrari will be on track at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit and then, on 12 and 13 at Jerez de la Frontera, Alpine will be working with us on both days, while McLaren and Mercedes will do one day each.” 
 

Photo credit: Morgan Mathurin

In the morning, Oscar Piastri was at the wheel of a McLaren F1 Team MCL60. He was unable to get through the planned number of laps, because of the extremely cold conditions with some parts of the track surface only reaching -2°C. However, he made up for it in the afternoon, fully completing the day’s planned programme.

The opening day of this first test of 2025 ended with the McLaren having completed 120 laps, with a best time of 1'07''008, running on a track layout measuring 3.463 kilometres. Tomorrow, Lando Norris takes over driving duties when the programme focuses on testing full wet and intermediate tyres for the 2026 season, which while maintaining the current 18” rim diameter, feature a slightly reduced width and external diameter on both the front and rear axles.

Even though rain is forecast for tomorrow, that does not rule out the use of artificial sprinklers and water tankers, which were used today when testing both types of tyre. 
 

Photo credit: Morgan Mathurin

This was the third and final test session, all of them lasting two days, which Pirelli has completed this year, aimed at the 2026 season. Prior to this one, there were sessions at the Barcelona and Mugello tracks, running dry weather tyres. These tests will resume in 2025, while on Tuesday 10 December at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina circuit, there will be a test for all teams to assess for the first time the final version of the dry weather tyres for the 2025 season. 

The test is taking place in collaboration with the BWT Alpine F1 Team which brought along a modified version of the A523, adapted to accept the new size of wheel rim. Driving duties were entrusted to the Australian, Jack Doohan, this year’s reserve driver for the French team, who is being promoted to the role of race driver as from next season. Unfortunately, a technical problem on the car reduced the time spent on track: Doohan completed a total of 47 laps, the best in a time of 1’16”461, set on slick tyres. Dry weather tyres were used at first, before switching to testing the intermediates and extreme wets on the artificially watered track.

Testing continues at Magny-Cours tomorrow, again with Doohan behind the wheel.

Once again today, the Pirelli engineers worked on two parallel programmes: Red Bull and Ferrari focused on development of compounds for 2025, especially the hardest in the planned range for next season. McLaren meanwhile ran a mule car in Mugello, for its first experience of running prototype tyres for the 2026 season.

For the first hour in the morning, the track was still damp, to the extent that all three cars ran intermediate tyres, which actually produced useful information, especially as Mugello is such a demanding track. From 11am onwards it was possible to run slicks to try and get through all the planned programme.

Over the course of the day, a total of 390 laps was completed. Lando Norris drove the most laps (118 in a time of 1’21’’302), followed by Liam Lawson (116 laps, 1’23’’219), Charles Leclerc (79 laps, 1’21’’053) and Carlos Sainz (77 laps, 1’21’’890). The next stage of the development programme for next year’s compounds will take place on 25 October during the second free practice session for the Mexico City Grand Prix, designated as an in-competition test, while work on the 2026 prototypes resumes on 13 and 14 November at Magny-Cours (France) using a mule car run by the Alpine team.

There were two different programmes scheduled for today. Liam Lawson, who is fulfilling his role as reserve driver with Oracle Red Bull Racing before he jumps into his seat with Visa Cash App RB next week in Austin was due to work on finalising compounds for the 2025 season while the McLaren F1 Team, with Lando Norris in the cockpit of a mule car was due to try for the first time the prototypes of the tyres to be used as from 2026. These have the same 18” diameter as the current ones, but the width and external diameter are slightly smaller on both the front and rear axles.

Weather permitting, testing resumes tomorrow. The same two teams and drivers will be on track, joined for the day by Scuderia Ferrari HP, with Charles Leclerc, working on next year’s tyres.

After rain made for limited track time yesterday, the weather again had its say today, with occasional rain and rather cool conditions. Therefore, development of the extreme wet and intermediate tyres was able to continue starting with the work that it had not been possible to carry out yesterday. By the end of the day, the English driver had completed 86 laps, equivalent to 379.7 kilometres, the quickest in a time of 1’28”428. Pirelli’s development testing resumes next week, on Tuesday 8 and Wednesday 9 at the Mugello circuit. Three teams will be on hand: Red Bull Racing and Ferrari will work on tyres for next season, while McLaren will be the second team to play its part in supporting Formula 1’s Global Tyre Supplier in the development of tyres for 2026.

Unfortunately, the bad weather meant any meaningful work was almost impossible, the German driver completing just 29 laps, the quickest in a time of 1’39”72. Testing continues tomorrow, again with Mercedes, when driving duties will fall to George Russell.

Carrying on from yesterday, Brazil’s Felipe Drugovich, the English team’s reserve driver, was again at the wheel. He completed 722 kilometres today, bringing the total for the test to 1,392.

“It was a positive debut, as we gathered plenty of information which will prove useful as we continue the development of this new product,” commented Mario Isola, Pirelli Director of Motorsport. “In this very early stage, it’s important to understand the correlation of the simulation of the loads and the actual reproduction of them on track. To do this, the cooperation of the teams is vital and therefore, I want to thank Aston Martin for having provided a modified car to enable this test to take place. Now our engineers will analyse the data, while in parallel, continuing to develop the product for the next test session which will take place at the Mugello circuit on 8 and 9 October, in collaboration with the McLaren F1 Team.”

After the first stages of design, simulation and test bed work, in parallel, the development programme will involve a series of track tests carried out with the vital collaboration of the teams. As per the first version of the technical regulations, the details of which remain to be finalised, the aerodynamic configuration of the cars will be very different and therefore the loads exerted on the tyres will also change. Track testing is therefore important to reproduce as closely as possible the conditions which will be found in 2026.  Therefore, the teams taking part in the tests will use a modified car and the first of these is Aston Martin who provided an adapted 2023 car.

The Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team’s reserve driver, Felipe Drugovich was on track today. The Brazilian, a member of the Silverstone-based squad’s Academy completed 670 kilometres and will be back on track again tomorrow.

The test was run with Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team e Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, who fielded their respective race drivers, Valtteri Bottas and Yuki Tsunoda, the latter taking over from Daniel Ricciardo who drove yesterday. Having a Japanese driver on track accounted for their being a crowd of a few hundred fans in the grandstands, proving just how popular Formula 1 is here.

Rain had affected the first few hours of yesterday’s session, but track conditions were perfect today, with air temperature reaching 20 °C, with a track temperature of 37 °C.

Both drivers completed a lot of laps: today’s Stakhanovite award went to Bottas (149 laps, the quickest in 1’33”983) and Tsunoda’s work load was also impressive (115 laps, best time 1’34”337).

“First of all, I must thank Racing Bulls and Sauber and the three drivers, for the support they provided during this test,” commented Mario Isola, Director of Pirelli Motorsport. “Staying at the same track for a further two days in this early part of the season when Formula 1 is working flat out, is no small matter. As is always the case in this type of test, the drivers can be said to be working in the dark, in other words without knowing what type of prototype they are testing, alternating with the current tyres, so that their feedback is completely unbiased. With over 3000 kilometres covered at Suzuka, we have acquired a huge amount of data on the slicks, as well as some information relating to the intermediate tyres. Over the coming months, this year’s test programme will continue to focus on finalising a construction that provides greater durability and on a complete renewal of the range of compounds, with the aim of reducing overheating. In addition, as from September, development will also start on the 2026 tyres.”

Valtteri Bottas (Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber): “Today has been a great day for track action – the sun shined throughout both sessions, and the laps we did amounted to almost three full race distances. It was another smooth day, the car felt very good, and we went through several compounds in order to gather important feedback for Pirelli, which will result in margins for improvement for the future. Overall, it’s been two good, productive days from my side – it could be a lot worse than spending two extra days driving in Suzuka! Now, I’ll be heading straight to the simulator back at base in Hinwil, as preparations for Shanghai are already underway.”

Yuki Tsunoda (Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team): "I love Suzuka and am always happy when I get to drive here – I never get bored of this circuit and it’s amazing to see so many fans still around the track. The good weather meant both the morning and afternoon sessions went very smoothly on the slick tyres and I’m glad we were able to complete our full programme, providing Pirelli with lots of good data, so it was a successful day.” 

Pirelli’s next development test sessions take place on 28 and 29 May at Le Castellet (France) and on 14 and 15 June at Mugello (Italy).

MARIO ISOLA - HEAD OF F1 AND CAR RACING

“We were delighted to open up a brand new chapter at Paul Ricard, with the debut for our 18-inch tyres – which will change the face of Formula 1 – taking place alongside our latest development test for next year’s 13-inch tyres. Renault provided a 2018 mule car for the 18-inch test, with Sergey Sirotkin driving to mark this historic moment. We completed our planned programme as expected, covering 213 laps with the 18-inch tyres over two days. This was very useful for us to take a first look at the new generation of tyres and start shaping the development path that we will follow for the remainder of this year and next year. Of course, it is hard to read too much into this test as these are still very early days, but we have accumulated all the preliminary data that we wanted in good weather conditions, so thank you very much to Renault and to Sergey for their availability. With the 13-inch 2020 tyres, we covered 212 laps over the two days thanks to Esteban Ocon and Mercedes. The work consisted of assessing a range of prototype slick tyres, as we begin to finalise next year’s specification: the last season of 13-inch tyres before we move on to 18 inches in 2021.”