Ferrari go more aggressive with Malaysia tyre choice

2017 Malaysian Grand Prix

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The Ferrari drivers have chosen two more sets of the softest tyre available than their Ferrari rivals for the upcoming Malaysian Grand Prix.

Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen have each chosen to take nine sets of the super-soft tyre. However two teams have been even more aggressive with their selections: The McLaren and Williams drivers will have ten sets each.

Lewis Hamilton will have seven sets of super-softs and five softs plus just one set of the medium compound tyres, which is mandatory.

2017 Malaysian Grand Prix tyre choices

DriverTeamTyres
Lewis HamiltonMercedes
Valtteri BottasMercedes
Daniel RicciardoRed Bull
Max VerstappenRed Bull
Sebastian VettelFerrari
Kimi RaikkonenFerrari
Sergio PerezForce India
Esteban OconForce India
Felipe MassaWilliams
Lance StrollWilliams
Fernando AlonsoMcLaren
Stoffel VandoorneMcLaren
Carlos Sainz JnrToro Rosso
Daniil KvyatToro Rosso
Romain GrosjeanHaas
Kevin MagnussenHaas
Nico HulkenbergRenault
Jolyon PalmerRenault
Pascal WehrleinSauber
Marcus EricssonSauber

Update: Since this article was published Toro Rosso has announced Pierre Gasly has taken over Daniil Kvyat’s car. Gasly will therefore use Kvyat’s tyre selection.

2017 Malaysian Grand Prix

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    Keith Collantine
    Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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    19 comments on “Ferrari go more aggressive with Malaysia tyre choice”

    1. More aggressive you say… okay

    2. Implying Mercedes may try to get through Q2 on the softs, as they’ve taken 4/5 sets?

    3. 1 set of the mediums, so that set will be run for the first time all weekend on race day? (if its dry), bold.

      1. For Lewis that is.

      2. @offdutyrockstar
        Nah, I’d guess they’re not planning to use it at all. Bottas will sample it on Friday, but in all likeliness, this run will confirm the simulations, showing that the Medium tyre is too slow and does not offer significantly more durability than the Soft, making it useless in the race.

    4. I wonder why when looking at this Pirelli aren’t moving their tyre compounds two stages over next year or why they wouldn’t offer the ultrasoft as a true qualifying tyre. I know it looks bad when their tyres struggle for durability but the teams clearly haven’t valued the hardest compound offered so the move to provide 3 compounds hasn’t provided the spark anticipated as the teams are just loading up on the two softest available.

      1. @alec-glen And Pirelli just can’t win do they? First they make a tires that instantly unusable by exploding and people complain (rightly so), then its not unusable but a definitive “pit now or you’ll be super slow” and people complain. Now, they have the tires that all previous complainers asked (durable and not falling into the cliff when it expires) and guess what? People complain.

        Personally I like the “falling off the cliff” tires. It’s like gravel trap / grass run off area, you don’t thrown out of race (exploding) if you overworked them but you also face a real consequences instead of continuing like nothing happened (like a tarmac run off). Just make the operating temp window well defined with teams input, so if they can’t bring it into working temperature it’s their fault.

    5. Doesn’t really matter much as Mercedes is going to embarrass the grid for the balance of the season.

    6. Won’t help, it’s like 1% boost for the morale. On race day HAM will lap on Softs as fast (if not faster) as VET on SuperSofts, on Mediums as fast as VET on Softs etc.

      1. BTW, McLaren and Williams go even more agressive than Ferrari. ALO trying some new kamikaze moves?!

        1. I think Alonso is magnet for Kamikaze moves by other drivers: Austria and in Singapore again.

    7. “The Ferrari drivers have chosen two more sets of the softest tyre available than their Ferrari rivals”

      @keithcollantine Should that second Ferrari be Mercedes or nothing at all!?

    8. When I started to read the headline “Ferrari go more aggressive with Malaysia” I thought “Can’t be more aggressive than Singapore”, then I reached the bit about this being tyre choices.

    9. I couldn’t but help notice that Sebastian and Kimi have made the same tyre choice as Max.

      1. +1. Something’s really going on with these guys. Karma is not enough already.

    10. In my opinion those Ferrari’s were aggressive enough in Singapore.

    11. Ferrari’s aggressive strategy is as encouraging as it is necessary. The key will likely be tyre deg.. and, to a lesser extent, ambient temperature.

      1. The key will likely be tyre deg.. and, to a lesser extent, ambient temperature.

        ….and to a greater extent, not hitting each other.

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