The P Zero White medium tyre and the P Zero Yellow soft tyre have been nominated for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend, which follows straight off the back of the Indian Grand Prix. Abu Dhabi marks the final time that the soft tyre will be seen in competition this year, during which it has proved itself to be Pirellis most versatile compound, appearing in 15 of the 20 grands prix on the calendar.
Abu Dhabi marks a perfect send off that plays to its attributes: the surface is fast and smooth and there is a wide variety of speeds and corners, in keeping with the design philosophy of the circuit, which was to incorporate many of the best features and layouts of other existing tracks.
Nonetheless, Yas Marina successfully comes together as a cohesive whole, where tyre wear is low and the drivers can push hard from start to finish. With plenty of test data from Abu Dhabi including from the now-traditional young driver test, which will take place once more straight after the grand prix with six teams this year the teams have plenty of prior knowledge and data from this spectacular circuit.
Yas Marina places specific demands on the tyres. The first part of the lap consists of a flowing sequence of corners, where the car is subjected to lateral forces of 4g, before there is a long straight where the cars remain on full throttle for around 15 seconds and the tyres are subjected to a downforce loading in the region of 800 kilogrammes. In turn 11 the tyres experience up to 5g under braking, while throughout the final sequence of corners the tyre tread is progressively heated up, reaching a peak temperature of approximately 120 degrees centigrade.
A peculiarity of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is that it starts in the afternoon and continues until dusk, meaning that ambient and track temperatures tend to fall, rather than rise as the race goes on and this has an important effect on tyre strategy.
Pirelli's motorsport director Paul Hembery: "We will always have very fond memories of the Abu Dhabi circuit because it is where our adventure in Formula One really started: back in 2010, the teams sampled our tyres there for the very first time at the official end of season test following the grand prix. That was a very special test, as we were brand new and the teams needed to understand our tyres. We've returned to test in Abu Dhabi a few times since, and we actually launched our 2012 programme to the international media there as well at the beginning of this year. The reason why we've often chosen Abu Dhabi for our testing and for other functions is because it has a bit of everything, which enables each aspect of a tyre's performance to be thoroughly assessed, and because the track itself features some very modern, state-of-the-art facilities. We know that the combination of the medium and the soft tyre works extremely well here, and with the teams also having plenty of data about the circuit characteristics, they should be in a strong position to construct some race strategies that will make a real difference to the outcome of the weekend. With the championship so closely balanced now, having the right strategy could quite literally decide the title. Qualifying is also really important in Abu Dhabi, so we are expecting to see some strong efforts throughout the three qualifying sessions on Saturday."
Pirelli's test driver Lucas di Grassi: "Abu Dhabi is one of those races that is as much of a challenge for the engineers as it is for the drivers. It's all about car balance and getting that right: the driver doesn't make as much of a difference as he can do in places like Spa and Suzuka, for instance. In terms of infrastructure, Abu Dhabi for me is the best circuit in the world: it's a great place for people to watch Formula One cars, with a little bit of everything and a spectacular setting. Tyre wear is not such a big issue in Abu Dhabi good traction is the most important consideration but the work done in free practice will be even more important than usual, as it will be vital for the teams to find a good balance on both compounds. The difference in speed between them should be quite small if the car set-up is right. With the championship coming to a close, everyone will be trying to find the last tiny advantage, so from a technical and strategy point of view it will be very interesting. With reasonably high ambient temperatures tyre warm-up should not be a problem, even with the harder compound. I would expect most teams to go with two pit stops, but some drivers might try stopping just once."
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