The challenges Pirelli faces in meeting F1 rules targets for 2026

As part of an effort to make F1 cars smaller and lighter, Pirelli has agreed to reduce the width of the front tires by 25mm and the width of the rear tires by 30mm. The diameter of the tires themselves will also become smaller, from the current 720mm to 705-710mm, although F1 will still use 18-inch wheels.

Despite the reduced tire size, the FIA does not anticipate that the new Pirelli tires will have significantly less grip than their current product.

“We do not expect a significant difference in the tire changes with regard to general mechanical grip,” said Jan Monchaux, FIA single-seater technical director. “It might be a slight reduction because the tires are smaller, but it’s not a gap that really concerns us.”

There has been talk of reducing tire and wheel sizes even further, with a move to 16-inch rims being considered. But the FIA and Pirelli agreed it would not be wise to add another variable to what is already a complex set of technical changes.

“We don’t want the tires to be a cause for concern at the start of 2026, and with these new powertrains, which in the traction phase will have enormous power, we were just a little nervous about going much further little.” Monchaux explained.

“The discount on tires is certainly less than we all would have hoped for, but we didn’t want to stray too far from the known product, which we currently have and are quite happy with.”

MORE: The turmoil of F1 rule change in 2026

Pirelli motorsport director Mario Isola said sticking with 18-inch tires would give the Italian tire maker a better chance of combating tire overheating, a common criticism of its F1 tires current.

Mario Isola, Racing Manager, Pirelli Motorsport, during the team principals press conference

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

“We proposed the narrower 18-inch tire to save weight. In our opinion, it is a good compromise between saving weight and a tire that has the characteristics required in 2026,” said Isola.

“With the 16-inch tires, we were concerned about the load capacity of the tire, as well as the possibility of significantly increasing overheating. We did some simulations and made a proposal to stay on 18-inch tires , which was accepted.”

The weight saved by the smaller tires is expected to amount to four to five kilograms, part of the FIA’s ambitious goal to reduce the car’s weight by 30 kg.

FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis said the governing body would grant Pirelli “increased opportunities” to test for 2026. The biggest obstacle for Pirelli, however, is the lack of a representative mule car .

Pirelli expects to have physical prototypes ready for testing by September this year, but it will only be able to try them on current-era low-downforce cars, which derive their aerodynamic loads from a way very different from that of the cars of 2026 and does not feature active aerodynamics.

“We will have mule cars, but they will be bigger, heavier, without any active aerodynamics and with downforce from a different concept,” Isola explained.

“Testing our narrow tires on these cars gives us the opportunity to collect data, but then we need to verify the data with the simulations to understand if we are going in the right direction. We can’t rely on track testing alone.”

FIA F1 2026 car renderings

Photo by: FIA

“We had a similar situation in 2016, because in 2017 the cars were five or six seconds per lap faster than the year before.

“We’re going to test with a downforce configuration that we think simulates what’s going to happen in 2026. The real problem is you have a lot more drag. We don’t have a 2026 car, so we don’t have one. we don’t have.” a car capable of doing this X mode and this Z mode.”

Having access to data from all 10 teams should help Pirelli stay in the right range, but if it needs to make further adjustments it can always play with the range of compounds available later.

For next year, Pirelli is working on a sixth, softer compound, which should be more suitable for low-load urban circuits, and could maintain this wider range until 2026.

“We can correct or refine with a different range of compounds,” Isola added. “So we can go more slowly, for example, if the charge level is lower than today. It’s always a balance that you have to find when you know the characteristics of the new car.”

With the final regulations for 2026 not yet signed and the construction of Pirelli tires expected to be finalized by September 1, 2025, this will give the Italian brand approximately 12 months to complete its development. Although it is a tight schedule, Isola is confident that Pirelli can move the project forward.

“Honestly, it’s not something new,” he concluded. “It was the same with the other big rule changes we had; we are doing our best to make the best tire for the future, as we have done in the past.

Members of the Pirelli and Ferrari teams

Photo by: Pirelli

“There are some limitations, we accept that, but we work in the best possible way to provide tires with the required characteristics. If they are not perfect in the first year, we will work to adjust or refine them to the following year, as we always do.

“But it’s also the same when the regulations don’t change, because anyway the teams are developing the cars and we have to follow with our tires.”