How Pirelli will deal with F1’s unexpected return to Sepang

Formula 1 supplier Pirelli has given some insight into what the upcoming Bahrain Grand Prix, taking place at Sepang, will entail on the tyre front.

Unable to run the event in its initial April slot – or later on – due to the Iran war, Bahrain has found an agreement with the FIA, F1 and Malaysia for Sepang to host the race.

The arrangement perhaps can’t quite be described as ‘last-minute’ but still represents a substantial challenge for all involved, given the world championship hasn’t visited Kuala Lumpur since 2017 – even more so for Pirelli.

The Italian manufacturer always faces tricky equations when choosing the most relevant tyre compounds to bring to every track in order to guarantee a level of strategic variance without compromising the rubber’s durability. 

“If I remember well, the last race in Malaysia was in 2017,” Pirelli Motorsport director Dario Marrafuschi commented shortly before the news was made official. “Since 2011 [when Pirelli replaced Bridgestone as F1’s sole manufacturer], we went [there] all the years, so we have a good history.

“2017 was the first year with wider tyres at that time, compared to the previous one. And in terms of, let me say, balance between tyre size and vehicle package, it was reasonably close to what we have today.

“So I would base our decisions on 2017 results and would go for a choice in line with what we did that year and not in ‘16, ‘15 or ‘14.”

Back in 2017, Pirelli picked its medium, soft and supersoft compounds – the equivalent of C2-C3-C4 in a C1-to-C5 range.

Marrafuschi clarified that Pirelli wouldn’t have time to send personnel over to Malaysia for further analysis as it needs to prepare the compounds as soon as possible. The shortened timeline also means tyres will need to be air-freighted rather than sent over by sea.

When asked about the calendar’s volatility, the Italian added: “There is a lot of headache about that. We consider all the scenarios, but we always are flexible. In order to accommodate all the needs, we maybe decide to have multiple productions, and then maybe use that backup production for the following race. So, we always build flexible scenarios. That is the key in this crazy environment.”

Marrafuschi clarified that Pirelli needs seven weeks’ notice for a European race, amid rumours of a potential season finale at Imola if the Qatar and Abu Dhabi rounds were to be cancelled.

This could provide further challenges due to the Emilia-Romagna climate, with temperatures typically comprised between 0C and 8C in December, as even Southern Europe can be colder than Las Vegas.

“Well, I think we can base our answer on Barcelona testing,” Marrafuschi said. “It would be similar to Barcelona testing. So, something we already saw. Of course, it is not ideal, but safe in any case, not scary. We are not worried about that.”

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– The Autosport.com Team