F1: Pirelli announces tire choices for Japanese and Russian grands prix

Pirelli has announced its Formula 1 tire compound choices for next month's Japanese and Russian Grands Prix. The Italian tire maker will repeat its 2013 choice of medium and hard tires for the Suzuka F1 race on the first weekend of October. A Pirelli statement said the hardest possible compounds were required due to the high-speed Suzuka track being "one of the most demanding tracks of the year in terms of lateral energy." The choice of soft and medium compounds for F1's debut race at Sochi in Russia a week later has been made because those compounds are "capable of covering a wide range of conditions" at the so-far untested track.

Originally on Autosport.com