Pirelli will reconsider the rule that prevented teams from running in Free Practice 2 in Japan

During Friday’s practice sessions, the weather was not cooperating in Suzuka. It was raining and despite a chance of rain for the rest of the weekend, teams preferred to stay in the garages. Some teams did not even leave their garage like Max Verstappen or Fernando Alonso. However, in 2024, drivers have the option to use more sets of intermediate tires. So why did no one go out on track on Friday afternoon?

The FIA has modified the rules on wet weather tires for this year 2024. These new rules state that Pirelli cannot provide for each driver « more than 13 sets of dry weather tires (Soft, medium, and hard combined), 5 sets of intermediate tires, and 2 sets of wet tires », according to article 30.2.ii of the FIA Sporting Regulations. However, this is still 1 additional set of intermediate tires compared to last year. But the real impact occurred by removing a rule that was like a wildcard in past years. In 2023, it was possible to give an additional set of intermediate tires to the drivers during the rest of the weekend if track conditions were declared wet by the FIA on Friday. This rule has been removed from the regulations.

Teams could therefore drive on Friday with intermediate tires without worrying about having an impact on their race on Sunday in case they needed to drive with a lot of intermediate tires.

Some drivers are not in favor of these new rules: “It’s a shame we didn’t have that session, they changed the tire rule,” Lewis Hamilton explains after the second practice session. “Therefore, no one goes out and drives on intermediates. It simply doesn’t make any sense, really, but that’s it.”

« It’s such a shame for the fans here, the people watching at home, or those who have travelled three quarters of the world only to not do any laps […] it’s quite boring », said George Russell. The Mercedes driver believes that the FIA should provide drivers with an extra set of tires during the final practice on Saturday.

Discussions to plan

Simone Berra, chief engineer at Pirelli, responded to the drivers’ criticisms by stating that it was not a decision by Pirelli, but a choice made in consultation with Formula 1 and the FIA: Previously, teams had four sets of intermediate tires and would receive an additional set if they used them, but now the rules have changed. This change was obviously voted on by all teams as well as by the FIA and F1. He says that the teams themselves chose not to use the intermediates due to the risk of rain during the race.

« It’s something we will continue to look at with the FIA and the teams to find a way to use them in tests. Ultimately, it’s not our decision, but it will be a subject we will discuss in the coming weeks,” he explained to the media in a press conference. According to Berra, an arrangement would be useful to require teams to drive in wet weather: revert to a set of intermediate tires.