Pirelli introducing new C6 tyre to improve racing on street tracks next year · RaceFans

Pirelli will add a sixth tyre compound to its range next year with the goal of improving the racing on street tracks.

Formula 1’s official tyre supplier will expand its range of tyres from five to six next year.

“We are already planning to go softer for next year, to introduce a C6, a softer compound especially for street circuits,” said Pirelli motorsport director Mario Isola.

The tyre has already been tested at Paul Ricard. “We are planning to test it again in Monza or later in the year,” said Isola.

Along with that change, Pirelli also intends to soften other compounds in its range. “We have this idea to introduce a softer compound and to move slightly also the range of the other compounds,” said Isola. The current C2 compound will move closer to the C3, while the C1 will remain the hardest tyre.

Pirelli’s range featured six compounds as recently as last year. However the hardest of those, the C0, was not used at any race. In 2018 they offered seven compounds ranging from ‘hyper soft’ to ‘super hard’.

“The 2025 construction has been defined 90% so we know that we can now focus more on compounds development with the targets, to reduce overheating, and move a little bit of the compounds in order to have them better spaced,” concluded Isola.

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Teams have welcomed the move to produce a softer tyre for street tracks. In Monaco some drivers were able to complete almost the entire race distance on Pirelli’s softest tyre compound, the C5, after they were able to change tyres when the race was red-flagged on the first lap.

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack said introducing the C6 is a worthwhile move “because I think it opens up additional strategic options” for races, particularly as the technical regulations will remain largely unchanged.

“Whether it will be [nominating] C6, C5, C4 or C6, C4, C2 or stuff like that, that is obviously for [Pirelli] to choose. But I think with the cars staying the same [for] the final year of the regulations, I think adding some variation there, we welcome that.”

Last year Pirelli nominated its softest tyre, the C5, at five tracks: Baku, Monaco, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Red Bull Ring, Hungaroring, Monza, Singapore, Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Las Vegas Strip and Yas Marina.

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