Image by Steven Tee/LAT
Four more years for Pirelli as F1 tire supplier
Pirelli will remain Formula 1’s tire supplier until the 2023 season following the agreement of a new four-year deal.
The FIA opened up a tire tender earlier this year, with Pirelli’s current contract set to expire at the end of the 2019 season. From 2021 onwards, F1 will switch to 18-inch wheels, meaning the first year of Pirelli’s new contract will be under the current regulations before the change. Hankook also bid for the contract, but F1 chairman and CEO Chase Carey says the Italian manufacturer has a brand positioning that the sport wants to remain associated with.
“Pirelli have been an important and valued partner to Formula 1 since 2011,” Carey said. “They are leaders in providing innovative state of the art capabilities. They are a premium brand, a clear global leader in motorsport and our ongoing partnership with them is proof once more of our desire to align F1 with the best in motorsport and beyond.
“We are delighted to have reached this agreement, which guarantees a long-term stable future for such a crucial component of Formula 1.”
Pirelli vice president and CEO, Marco Tronchetti Provera, says F1 is the ideal platform to showcase the tire manufacturer’s work and improve its product.
“It’s excellent news that Pirelli is prolonging its partnership with Formula 1 until 2023,” Tronchetti Provera said. “This new agreement extends our presence to a total of 13 seasons in the modern era, with Pirelli also present in 1950, when the World Championship was inaugurated.
“Formula 1 is and will remain the pinnacle of motorized competition: the perfect environment for Pirelli, which has always defined motorsport as its most advanced technological research and development laboratory.”
FIA president Jean Todt expects the continuity offered by Pirelli to be beneficial to its development of the next generation of tires.
“I am happy to have Pirelli appointed for another period as official tyre supplier to the FIA Formula 1 World Championship,” Todt said. “It will allow all of us to enjoy the experience gained since 2011. We know how crucial and difficult is the role of the tire supplier and, particularly, in Formula 1.”
Chris Medland
While studying Sports Journalism at the University of Central Lancashire, Chris managed to talk his way into working at the British Grand Prix in 2008 and was retained for three years before joining ESPN F1 as Assistant Editor. After three further years at ESPN, a spell as F1 Editor at Crash Media Group was followed by the major task of launching F1i.com’s English-language website and running it as Editor. Present at every race since the start of 2014, he has continued building his freelance portfolio, working with international titles. As well as writing for RACER, his broadcast work includes television appearances on F1 TV and as a presenter and reporter on North America's live radio coverage on SiriusXM.
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