Pirelli’s winter F1 tyres make debut at the Terez test

After a short winter break of just over two months, Formula One is back in action at Jerez in Spain this week, for the first of three four-day pre-season tests (with the following two tests scheduled for Bahrain, from 19-22 February and 27 February-2 March).

This will be the first appearance for many of the 2014 cars, as Formula One undergoes a technical revolution with 1.6-litre turbocharged engines and multiple energy recovery systems powering the 2014 challengers, which will have to operate within a drastically reduced fuel allocation and revised aerodynamic rules.

These important changes present a completely different set of vehicle dynamics, so Pirelli has developed a brand new 2014 tyre range to cater for these unique demands. All the 2014 slick tyres have a new construction and new compounds, with slightly increased weight. The wet tyre has a new tread pattern and a different compound.

Jerez, which has the roughest tarmac of any circuit visited by Formula One, will be the first opportunity for the teams to start integrating their new cars with the 2014 tyres, while the final day will be devoted to wet weather tyre testing on an artificially-watered track (unless it rains at any of the previous test days, in which case this will become the dedicated wet-weather test day).