STRATEGY: Does Pirelli expect anything else than a one-stop strategy in Mexico due to the bold tyre choice?

F1 Grand Prix, GP Mexico, Autódromo Hermanos Rodriguez

Despite a bold tyre choice for this weekend's Mexico City Grand Prix, Formula One's sole tyre manufacturer Pirelli expects drivers to pursue a single-stop strategy at today's 71-lap encounter at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

McLaren's Lando Norris will start today’s Mexico City Grand Prix at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez from pole position, having set a time of 1m 15.586s in Q3. The Briton secured his fifth pole this year, his first in Mexico and his 14th overall.

He came under pressure from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who was quickest after the first Q3 run, but will start alongside the Englishman on the front row with a time of 1m 15.848s. The second row of the grid tomorrow will see Lewis Hamilton in the second Ferrari start third thanks to a lap in 1m 15.938s, with his former team-mate George Russell next to him in fourth for Mercedes.

The Milan-based tyre manufacuter has elected to carry over its bold approach from Austin to this weekend's Mexico City Grand Prix, having skipped a compound in its tyre choice.

While the Medium and Soft are the C4 and C5 respectively, as in 2024, the Hard will now be the C2. For the Mexico City track, this compound is an extremely conservative choice, with a considerable delta in terms of lap time compared to the other two, while also offering less grip.

Last year, the Soft only came into play in qualifying and then in the race, only in an attempt to secure the extra point for setting the fastest race lap, but now the scenario could change considerably.

Pirelli has expected that the "advantage to be had from the C4 and C5 could in fact lead the teams to aim for a race run predominantly on these compounds.

However, that comes with the risk of possibly having to make a second pit stop because of degradation. Anyone choosing the C2 could relatively comfortably manage a longer stint, going for a one-stop on the way to the chequered flag, although it entails a reduction in performance."

As for the tyre usage during qualifying, the C5 was the only tyre used throughout the three segments. On what is the third shortest track on the calendar, traffic is always an issue, leading to the usual anxiety about getting out on track to complete a final lap, while leaving gaps to the cars in front.

Isack Hadjar was quickest for Racing Bulls in Q1, with Norris stamping his authority on Q2 before putting together another perfect lap to clinch pole in the top-ten shoot-out.

Commenting on the qualifying session, Pirelli's Head of Motorsport, Mario Isola said: “Track conditions and tyre degradation in FP3 when race simulation was relevant were very similar to yesterday. However, in qualifying track evolution meant that times matched those from our simulations.

“In this session the C5’s performance was seen over a single lap. Those drivers who got to the first corner after the long run of over one kilometre, with the tyres at the right temperature across the front axle definitely benefited from a well balanced car and therefore had a competitive advantage. Managing rear tyre temperature in the final sector was the key to gaining a few precious hundredths.

“The few drivers who managed to set their best time on a second lap probably owe it exclusively to the improvement from track evolution. "

Track temperature which could reach 50°C today, will therefore be a key factor when it comes to strategy choices with the aim of managing thermal degradation.

With no drivers having saved two sets of Mediums, Pirelli thinks that its effectively clear that a one-stop strategy will be the most popular choice for the race. The Medium has proved to be the most versatile compound this weekend and starting on it opens up a couple of options at least.

If drivers can extend their first stint to a window between laps 42 and 48, they could fit Softs to go to the flag. On the other hand, if the C4 performance drop is too high, a switch to the Hard compound between laps 26 and 32 is possible.

Starting on the Soft could give an initial advantage in terms of grip, but the heavy fuel load would require the driver to manage their race pace. In this situation, a shift to the C4 would come between laps 23 and 29, or if the C2 is preferred, between laps 20 and 26.

"Finally, in theory, one can also look at a two-stop strategy, running Soft-Medium-Soft, which produces a similar overall race time to the one-stop. However, the disadvantage of losing places after the pit stops, and the difficulty in overtaking at this track, means this is really only viable on paper," added Isola.