The Monaco Grand Prix will see Formula 1 drivers use Pirelli’s new ultra-soft tyre for the first time, where Mercedes and Red Bull have chosen max allocation for the event later this month.
The purple-banded rubber is the softest tyre that Pirelli offers teams and is best suited for street circuits like Monaco, although the tyre will also be available for selection for the Canadian Grand Prix next month.
Both Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg chose to take 10 sets of the ultra-soft tyre to Monaco, leaving them with two sets of the super-soft and a pair of the soft compound each.
Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen made the same choice for Red Bull Racing, as did Renault’s Kevin Magnussen.
Jolyon Palmer opted for a slightly different strategy in the other Renault, choosing to go with one more super-soft tyre rather than the full 10 ultra-softs like Magnussen.
Both Williams drivers took are more conservative approach to their tyre selections, given their high tyre degradation the past few races. Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas will have seven sets of ultra-soft compound tyres along with four sets of super-soft and two sets of softs.
Image via XPB Images & Pirelli
Josh Kruse
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