Pirelli, Hembery: "riders will have to pay attention especially to the rear tyres"

The Mercedes drivers dominated in the two free practice sessions on Friday in Abu Dhabi, with Lewis Hamilton fastest in FP1 on the soft P Zero Yellows, and Nico Rosberg best in FP2 on the supersoft P Zero Reds.

Of the two sessions, FP2 was the most representative as it started in the afternoon and ended in darkness, as will be the case for qualifying and the race. This causes temperatures to drop, instead of increasing, as happens in other GPs, influencing the behavior of the tyres. The teams focused on this aspect today.

During the rest of the weekend, a greater evolution of the track is expected, which will make it faster and with more grip.
The session ended with track temperatures of 29 degrees: slightly lower than last year. And similar conditions are expected for the race.

Some cars showed some graining on the front supersofts.
After today's long runs, the data collected so far suggests a race with two pit stops.
The last testing session, tomorrow, will be held in the morning, in the heat, which is why the teams have finalized their preparations for qualifying today.

Paul Hembery, Pirelli Motorsport Director: “We saw two very busy sessions, with the teams busy evaluating the various improvements resulting from the transition from soft to supersoft. This was mainly due to changing temperatures, which affect the cars differently. However, the track is still evolving, so we don't have the full picture yet. During FP1 we saw some thermal degradation, as expected, which however stabilized during FP2 (more representative of race conditions). Thermal degradation will however remain a significant factor during the race: the drivers will have to pay attention especially to the rear tyres."