Spanish Grand Prix: the Barcelona circuit from a tire point of view

In the past the Barcelona circuit has been used for pre-season winter testing. This year, however, the pre-season tests took place in Jerez and Bahrain. For this reason, neither the teams nor Pirelli know how the new single-seaters will behave on this circuit.

The left side of the cars is particularly stressed in Spain, with heavy traction on the left rear tyres. The lateral forces exerted on both left tires are among the highest of the entire year.

The high level of energy discharged on the compounds can cause the surface temperature of the tires to reach 130 degrees centigrade. Since there is only one long straight, the tires don't have much opportunity to cool down during the lap.

P Zero Orange hard is a "high working range" compound, developed for high temperatures and difficult conditions; P Zero White medium is a "low working range" compound, suitable for wide use. This combination allows you to have a solution for all climatic conditions that may arise in Barcelona.

Eight of the 10 races held in Barcelona were won from pole position, underlining the importance of qualifying and the difficulty of overtaking on the Spanish circuit. As a result, strategy will be crucial to gain positions on the track, as happened in the 2013 race.

Last year, Fernando Alonso won the race with a four-stop strategy, leaving behind Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus), who had stopped 3 times.
On that occasion Alonso set a new record: he was the only driver to win the Grand Prix on the Montmelò circuit starting from fifth position on the grid.