Qualifiers in Hungary will be held in an updated format

At the Hungaroring circuit, which is home to this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix, Pirelli tire makers will bring the softest trio of compounds – C3, C4 and C5 – and qualifying will be held in an updated format.

In the first qualifying session, riders can ride only on Hard, in the second – only on Medium, and in the third – only on Soft. This reduces the number of kits that tire manufacturers bring to the podium for each rider to eleven instead of the usual thirteen, a step towards greater environmental friendliness and cost savings.

In total, each rider gets seven slick compositions on Saturday and Sunday. At least one hard setup and one medium setup must be saved per race. As for the other four teams, one set will have to be handed in after the first and second training sessions and two sets after the third free practice.

The number of sets of intermediate and rain tires on the stage in Hungary remains unchanged: four and three respectively.

Mario Isol, head of the Pirelli racing division: “The Hungarian Grand Prix is ​​​​a classic summer event in Formula 1. The air and track temperatures are usually very high, which is the main feature of this weekend. As a result, the riders, car and tires are in for a serious test, not least due to the fact that no one can breathe on the winding track.

The track has a fairly long straight, at the end of which the only real opportunity to overtake is to brake before the first right turn. Of the remaining thirteen corners – seven on the right and six on the left, and in terms of average lap speed on the Formula 1 calendar, the circuit is only ahead of Monaco and the cars are set to the same level of downforce as in Monaco.

Given the large number of slow corners, acceleration efficiency on exit will be one of the most important factors, but at the same time the risks of overheating tires are high. Despite being stationary, the track is rarely used, so the condition of the tarmac improves steadily over the weekend as the track is covered in a layer of used rubber.

Usually in the Hungarian race it all depends on the strategy and tire wear. This year we will be bringing a softer trio of line-ups than in 2022. In addition, an alternative qualifying format will be tested for the first time, where only hard tires can be used in the first session, medium in the second and soft in the final when the weather is dry appears to be. These changes should, in theory at least, give teams more strategic options.

In addition, the alternative qualifying format saves two sets of tires compared to the traditional one. The second time such a qualifying format has been tried at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza. After the FIA, Formula 1 and the teams will decide whether to use it next season or not.”