The first day in Monaco went according to expectations for the technicians of the Pirelli, which received positive indications from the data collected between the first and second free practice sessions. During PL1, Ferrari was the only team to use only the medium tire, while Williams and Aston Martin used only the Soft. In the afternoon, however, almost exclusively Medium and Soft were chosen by everyone, with the Cavallino the only exception to try the Hard in the final long run simulation.
Conditions were decidedly warmer than last season’s Grand Prix. The asphalt temperature exceeded 50 degrees in some moments: this helped to bring the tires up to temperature, while, as often happens, wear and degradation were contained. The second session was interrupted by a red flag – caused by Daniel Ricciardo’s McLaren – which reduced the time available for practice.
At the moment, the estimated gap between Medium and Soft, the two compounds considered key for the race (in case of dry weather), is four tenths, while Medium and Hard are separated by about six tenths. However, the performance gaps between the compounds are to a certain extent influenced by the evolution of the track, which in Monte Carlo is always very high.
“Free practice went as we thought – he confirmed Mario IsolaCar Racing Manager of Pirelli – Perhaps the only element of surprise was the weather: compared to last year, the asphalt temperature was about 15 degrees higher, I have never seen such heat in Munich. And it might surprise us again over the weekend, as there is a chance it will rain on Sunday. We saw some graining in the morning, which is no surprise considering the ‘green’ and slippery asphalt of this course, and we expect it to continue to evolve over the weekend. It was important for the riders to set benchmarks with the new 18 inches, which naturally give a different perspective on this narrow and winding circuit, where precision is essential ”.
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