Pirelli's Intense Tire Testing at Suzuka Post-Race

Pirelli’s Intense Tire Testing at Suzuka Post-Race

09/04/2024

Just days after the Suzuka race, Pirelli’s rigorous tire testing on the Japanese Grand Prix circuit spotlighted the manufacturer’s dedication and strategic planning for future races.

Two days following the Suzuka race, Pirelli is hard at work on the Japanese Grand Prix circuit. The Italian manufacturer is testing its tires, having requisitioned a car from RB F1 and a single-seater from Stake F1 for the occasion.

Daniel Ricciardo and Valtteri Bottas respectively took the wheel for the teams, completing 106 laps for the Australian and 133 for the Finn. They managed to do 16 and 17 laps on a wet track respectively, after heavy overnight rain also cut into their schedule.

On the wet track, the aim was to explore how to achieve a better operating window with intermediate tires, to limit the use of tire warmers, as well as to reduce overheating of the wet tires. On dry conditions, the focus was on preparations for 2025.

In total, 12 types of tires were utilized over a day that saw the two drivers cover more than 1200 kilometers. Both teams and Pirelli will continue their tests tomorrow, with Bottas and Yuki Tsunoda.

“The first day went well on my end, we followed the entire day’s schedule and gathered a lot of useful data on next year’s tires for Pirelli,” Bottas stated.

“The weather conditions were a bit challenging in the morning following the heavy rains, but it worked out well as it allowed us to test the intermediate tires. Then, once the track had dried sufficiently, we proceeded with our schedule.”

“We completed several laps and tested different tire compounds. Every time we are on track, it’s also a new opportunity for the whole team to improve, so overall, it was a good, productive day, with more to come tomorrow.”

Ricciardo managed to get in more laps at Suzuka than over the weekend. He had given up his car on Friday morning, was confined to the garage by the rain in EL2, and didn’t make it past the third turn in the race.

The day allowed him to work with Pirelli, in addition to enjoying the circuit: “A productive day with Pirelli, testing some 2025 compounds. Unfortunately, we had limited running this morning due to the weather conditions.”

“But on a positive note, this allowed us to explore both the wet and intermediate compounds we don’t often use. The afternoon’s program went smoothly.”

“We completed our walk plan and were able to provide constructive data to Pirelli – personally, it was nice to do some laps of Suzuka after our race weekend.”

Pirelli's Intense Tire Testing at Suzuka Post-Race

Pirelli’s Intense Tire Testing at Suzuka Post-Race. Pirelli’s Intense Tire Testing at Suzuka Post-Race

Race Center
China Flag
Chinese GP
21 Mar 2025 - 23 Mar 2025
Free Practice 1
21 MAR 03:30 - 04:30
Sprint Qual
21 MAR 07:30 - 08:14
Sprint Race
22 MAR 03:00 - 04:00
Qualifying
22 MAR 07:00 - 08:00
Race
23 MAR 07:00 - 09:00

2025 F1 Australian Grand Prix - Race Results

Lando Norris
1
LANDO
NORRIS
57
Max Verstappen
2
MAX
VERSTAPPEN
+0.895s
George Russell
3
GEORGE
RUSSELL
+8.481s
Alex Albon
4
ALEX
ALBON
+12.773s
Kimi Antonelli
5
KIMI
ANTONELLI
+15.135s
Lance Stroll
6
LANCE
STROLL
+17.413s
Nico Hulkenberg
7
NICO
HULKENBERG
+18.423s
Charles Leclerc
8
CHARLES
LECLERC
+19.826s
Oscar Piastri
9
OSCAR
PIASTRI
+20.448s
Lewis Hamilton
10
LEWIS
HAMILTON
+22.473s
Pierre Gasly
11
PIERRE
GASLY
+26.502s
Yuki Tsunoda
12
YUKI
TSUNODA
+29.884s
Esteban Ocon
13
ESTEBAN
OCON
+33.161s
Oliver Bearman
14
OLIVER
BEARMAN
+40.351s
Liam Lawson
15
LIAM
LAWSON
47 DNF
Gabriel Bortoleto
16
GABRIEL
BORTOLETO
47 DNF
Fernando Alonso
17
FERNANDO
ALONSO
34 DNF
Carlos Sainz
18
CARLOS
SAINZ
0 DNF
Jack Doohan
19
JACK
DOOHAN
0 DNF
Isack Hadjar
20
ISACK
HADJAR
0 DNF
F1 CALENDAR 2025
Race
Date
Chinese Flag
Chinese
Shanghai International
23 Mar
Japanese Flag
Japanese
Suzuka Circuit
6 Apr
Bahrain Flag
Bahrain
Sakhir desert
13 Apr
Saudi Arabia Flag
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street
20 Apr
United States Flag
United States
Miami
04 May

2025 FORMULA 1 DRIVERS' WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

Lando Norris
1
LANDO
NORRIS
25 Points
Max Verstappen
2
MAX
VERSTAPPEN
18
George Russell
3
GEORGE
RUSSELL
15
Alex Albon
4
ALEX
ALBON
12
Kimi Antonelli
5
KIMI
ANTONELLI
10
Lance Stroll
6
LANCE
STROLL
8
Nico Hulkenberg
7
NICO
HULKENBERG
6
Charles Leclerc
8
CHARLES
LECLERC
4
Oscar Piastri
9
OSCAR
PIASTRI
2
Lewis Hamilton
10
LEWIS
HAMILTON
1

2025 FORMULA 1 CONSTRUCTORS' WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

1
McLaren
27
2
Mercedes
25
3
Red Bull
18
4
Williams
12
5
Aston Martin
8
6
Sauber
6
7
Ferrari
5
8
Alpine F1
0
9
Haas F1
0
10
Racing Bulls
0
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