F1: Pirelli announces Sochi tire plans

Tire supplier Pirelli has nominated the three compounds Formula 1 teams will use for the fourth grand prix of the 2016 championship in Russia.

Pirelli will bring medium, soft and super-soft rubber to April's Russian GP at Sochi, and require all drivers to use at least one set of medium and one set of soft tires in the race.

The super-soft compound has been nominated as the tire teams must use at least once during the final segment of qualifying.

New regulations have been introduced for this season, designed to give F1 competitors more freedom over tire choice.

The tire supplier allocates three compounds for each grand prix, and nominates two that must be used in the race, plus a compound that must be used at least once in Q3.

Teams are then free to make their own choices for the remaining 10 sets of dry tires allocated to every driver for each grand prix weekend. They must make their tire choices no less than eight weeks before the start of each European race, and 14 weeks before the start of a race outside of Europe.

Pirelli's choice of medium, soft and super-soft for Russia means these compounds will now be made available for each of the first four races of the new season.

Originally on Autosport.com