#F1 2015 Pole Time Eclipsed in Practice. @PirelliSport #FP1 #FP2 #AustrianGP

Nico Rosberg used Pirelli’s ultrasoft tyre to set the fastest lap

ever recorded around the Red Bull Ring, which has been resurfaced for this year and

has already produced a notable upturn in speed compared to 2015.

The Mercedes driver clocked a best lap of 1m07.373s during FP1 before joining his

fellow drivers in sitting out more than 30 minutes of FP2 as torrential rain coated the

4.326-kilometre circuit.

When the track began to dry out, the drivers had to run on intermediate tyre. It wasn’t

until the final 20 minutes that teams were able to use dry-weather tyres once again with

the popular choice ranging between the supersoft and ultrasoft.

Having used the ultrasoft in FP1, Mercedes driver Rosberg’s best lap in FP2 was

recorded on the supersoft.

Rosberg’s FP1 performance confirmed the Red Bull Ring will be the shortest lap of the

year in terms of time and will make an optimal qualifying lap on Saturday even more

crucial as a small gap or mistake could have a significant impact. Sofar, due to the heavy

wash during FP2, there’s no real data available related to the time gap between the

different compounds.

Paul Hembery, Pirelli motorsport director: “The new smooth surface and the ultrasoft

tyre combined to produce the fastest lap ever recorded at the Red Bull Ring this

morning, which could mean that a sub-1m05 lap is possible in qualifying if it stays dry.

With the heavy rain keeping the cars off the track for a large chunk of FP2, this didn’t

provide a proper opportunity to gather representative running data on this track.”

FP1 – TIMES

Rosberg	1m07.373s	Ultrasoft	New
Hamilton	1m07.730s	Ultrasoft	Used
Vettel	1m08.022s	Ultrasoft	New

FP2 – TIMES

Rosberg	1m07.967s	Supersoft	New
Hamilton	1m07.986s	Ultrasoft	New
Hulkenberg	1m08.580s	Ultrasoft	New

FP1 – BEST TIME PER COMPOUND

Supersoft	Rosberg	1m08.166s
Ultrasoft	Rosberg	1m07.373s
Soft	Hulkenberg	1m09.280s

FP2 – BEST TIME PER COMPOUND

Supersoft	Rosberg	1m07.967s
Intermediate	Perez	1m15.902s
Soft	Hamilton	1m09.145s
Ultrasoft	Hamilton	1m07.986s

MOST LAPS BY COMPOUND

Ultrasoft	Ricciardo	17 laps
Supersoft	Kvyat	13 laps
Intermediate	Alonso	10 laps
Intermediate	Kvyat	10 laps
Intermediate	Sainz Jr	10 laps
Soft	Button	7 laps

Tyre Statistics of the Day:

		Inters	Soft	Supersoft	Ultrasoft
Kms driven	*	700	865	1820	1898
Sets used overall	**	22	22	35	36
Highest number of laps	**	15	27	23	23

* The above number gives the total amount of kilometres driven in FP1 and FP2 today, all drivers combined.

** Per compound, all drivers combined.

Minimum prescribed tyre pressures: 22 psi (fronts) 19.5 psi (rears)

THE CIRCUIT FROM A TYRE POINT OF VIEW:
 The first two sectors are fast with the final sector being slower and more
technical.
 The circuit tests a wide spectrum of a tyre’s ability, in terms of lateral and
longitudinal loading.
 Wear, degradation and temperatures are quite low, which is why we have the
softest tyres.
 Judging the braking points is quite complex, as there are a number of uphill
braking areas.
 The track surface is generally low-grip and low abrasion, as well as being bumpy
in places.
 Spielberg is the shortest lap time of the year with only nine corners, so precision
is vital.

THE THREE NOMINATED COMPOUNDS:
 Yellow soft: unusually this is the hardest tyre in the range, one of the mandatory
available sets.
 Red supersoft: these should play an important role in the race, also a mandatory
available set.
 Purple ultrasoft: the most popular choice by a long way, with up to nine sets
nominated per car.

HOW IT WAS A YEAR AGO:
 A one-stop strategy proved key to victory, although this was influenced by an
early safety car. Nico Rosberg started on the supersoft and then switched to the
soft on lap 38 (of 71).
 Best-placed alternative strategy: Pastor Maldonado finished seventh from 10th on
the grid (promoted by grid penalties) after starting on the soft tyre and doing a
long opening stint.