Formula One News

Formula One News » Monaco From A Tyre Perspective Posted on 26/05/2011

Pirelli brings another splash of colour to Monte Carlo’s famous harbour this weekend with the debut of the new supersoft tyres, known as the PZero Red. These tyres are designed to be ideally suited to the tight and twisty streets of the Principality, with the drivers having their first chance to try out the new rubber tomorrow.

The Track

The legendary Monaco circuit is 3340 metres long, with the 78-lap grand prix witnessing the debut of Pirelli’s new PZero Red supersoft tyre to guarantee maximum grip over the slippery asphalt, which is open to normal road traffic in the evenings. This is just one of the factors that makes the grip level so hard to predict.

At Sainte Devote, the cars stand on the brakes for the first corner of the lap, losing 160kph in 100 metres. The continuous heavy use of the brakes in Monaco generate extremely high temperatures which are also felt in the tyres, increasing the stress caused by heat on the tyre as a whole.

There is a big compression as the cars exit Casino Square that can destabilize the car under braking.

The Loew’s hairpin, as it is still known, is the slowest corner of the season, taken at just 47kph. Due to the low speed there is no aerodynamic downforce, so the full steering lock means that the front-right tyre is doing all the work when it comes to the change of direction.

Tabac, following the famous tunnel, is one of the hardest parts of the circuit with a tight line and no escape road. The cars reach around 160kph here, developing a lateral load of 3.31G.

It’s another tight entry to the first corner at the Swimming Pool complex. The cars hit the kerbs at more than 200kph, generating a lateral force of 3.65G.

The last part of the lap is vital for a clean run, where the drivers have to thread their cars carefully between guardrails apply the brakes while cornering at the same time. It’s back on the gas at Anthony Noghes and then up through second and third gears to unleash the full power of the engine on the start-finish straight for another lap.