F1 | Bahrain test: here are the tires chosen by the teams, there are surprises

There are less than 24 hours left before the start of testing in Bahrain and it is already time to make choices, in this case relating to tyres. In fact, Pirelli has revealed the teams' decisions for the three days of testing in Sakhir regarding the sets chosen, thus allowing us to get a first idea of ​​what the teams' work programs will be.

Each team will have a total of 35 sets of slick tires at their disposal, to be divided as they wish among the five compounds in the range, to which are added 2 sets of intermediate and 2 sets of full wet tires for extreme wet conditions. Although adverse conditions are not expected for this week's tests, the first day of the Formula 2 and Formula 3 tests held in mid-February was affected by rain.

It is good to keep in mind that the tires have not been substantially modified compared to the last championship, taking up the characteristics of the tires introduced in the middle of last season when they were revised to respond to the loads of the 2023 cars, which were higher than expected.

For Red Bull there will be no “glory-run” with the C5 at the end of the test, given that it has chosen not to bring the softest compound available to the range, as have McLaren, Aston Martin, Alpine, Racing Bulls and Haas. Generally the softer compound was used towards the end of the day, with cooler temperatures, but there were occasions in which the teams used them in the hottest hours, towards the end of one of the two drivers' shift.

From the allocation chosen by the Milton Keynes team, it emerges that the intention is to run with the hardest compounds from the range, in particular with the C3 (20 sets), the C2 (5 sets) and the C1 (6 sets). , while it only brought 4 trains of C4, in order to have a reference even with softer compounds.

A decision opposite to that of Ferrari, which instead chose to bring 2 sets of C5 and 6 of C4, with the possibility of also carrying out runs of intermediate length to evaluate wear and obtain data not so much in view of the weekend , where the C4 will not be present, but for the rest of the world championship. The Maranello team will also present itself with 19 C3 trains, 4 C2 trains and 2 C1 trains.

Pirelli tyres

Photo by: Lionel Ng / Motorsport Images

The approach of Mercedes is more extreme, as it will be the team with the highest number of sets of C3s on the entire grid, 25: it is clear that the work program of the Brackley team will focus on a flexible compound, present in every event of the world championship. On the other hand, in fact, there are only 2 sets of C1 and 2 sets of C2, the hardest covers, to which are added 4 sets of C4 and 2 of C5, to be used in the cooler hours.

Interesting choices also from McLaren, Aston Martin and Alpine. The Woking and Enstone teams have decided not to request any sets of C5 and C4, tires which were not selected by Pirelli for the race weekend, focusing exclusively on the other three compounds.

The Silverstone team has also followed the same approach, although it will still present itself with two sets of soft tyres, realistically to give its drivers the opportunity to understand the behavior of the car with a compound that guarantees greater grip.

The choices of the ten teams for the tests in Bahrain: