Monza has actually gone through significant resurfacing work this year ahead of the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix. This has not just made the fastest track in the champion considerably gripper, however has actually produced fascinating tire management obstacles for the groups and motorists.

The resurfacing, part of a recently-completed €21 million (US$23,400) center upgrade task, paved the complete 5.739km lap in fresh asphalt. Many motorists have actually been singing about the replacement of kerbs that assisted provide Monza an ‘old-school’ feel, however the brand-new track surface area is likewise playing an essential part in the weekend. Before the Italian GP, F1 tire provider Pirelli anticipated (based upon a July track examination) that track temperature levels might reach 50degC in bright conditions. This is due to the fact that the brand-new, black surface area shows more light from the sun as heat than its predecessor. The track surface area smoothness triggers more grip. Both of these elements increase destruction, specified as the degeneration of a tire’s efficiency in time due to the effect of heat on the rubber.

Pirelli’s temperature level estimate ended up being real, as the track surface area in Practice 1 – simply after lunch on a remarkable Friday – hovered in between 49.6 and 51.9degC. In 2nd practice, held in between 5 and 6pm, the variety was 41.6 to 48degC.

Central to the destruction difficulty is that the brand-new track surface area produces graining. Graining happens when the inner part of the tire (the carcass) is chillier than the external surface area of the tire. This imbalance develops motion in the rubber that triggers little pieces to remove and stay with the surface area, forming abnormalities that lower grip and add to quick tire destruction. Graining typically happens in cold conditions, however can likewise appear on a brand-new track surface area.

‘The adhesive grip is quite high, so the tarmac is grippy, said Pirelli’s primary F1 engineer Simone Berra. ‘But, on the other hand, the tarmac is very smooth. The mechanical grip of the tyre is not that high. That [imbalance] is why we are generating this level of graining. The adhesive grip is okay, but the hysteresis grip is not high.’

According to Berra, graining will undoubtedly take place after a number of laps. Teams can attempt to postpone it up until somewhat later in the stint, however they will all face it eventually at Monza. The low-downforce nature of the track doesn’t assist due to the fact that any aerodynamic load modifications to alleviate pressure on the tires will compromise excessive vital speed. At other tracks, graining took place either on the front or rear axle, making it possible for groups to handle their tires appropriately. However, at Monza, the graining has actually existed at both ends. It is a hard balancing act.

‘If you are suffering from understeer and generating graining on the front axle because you are protecting the rear, you are using the rear axle to rotate the car,’ stated Berra. ‘But then you are generating graining on the rear axle. It is very difficult on this circuit, compared to others, to find a good compromise to protect one axle [so that] it’s fine. At Spa, we had high graining on Friday in practice. But, in the end, it was simply on the front axle. The groups worked a lot to safeguard the front axle, and it wound up, on Sunday, being a great race without graining being a problem and a one-stop [strategy] was possible.’

The brand-new track surface area will affect how groups approach their tire method throughout Sunday’s 53-lap race. They are still anticipated to favour the one-stop method, instead of pitting two times to invest less time on more abject rubber. They will most likely just move to a two-stop if the graining doesn’t enhance as the track progresses over the weekend.

Pirelli has actually brought the very same substances to Monza as in 2015: the C3, C4 and C5. These are the hardest tires in its slick variety. The C3 (softest) and C4 (medium) substances were utilized thoroughly on Friday, with groups choosing to conserve their more difficult tires for the race. The speed distinction (or delta) in between C3 and C4 in practice was around half a 2nd, associating to Pirelli’s simulation.

‘We are seeing high levels of degradation compared to 2023,’ stated Berra. ‘At the moment, we are not thinking about going to a two-stop race. Even the teams are not thinking about it. They are keeping two hard compounds for the race; they want to be safe in case degradation values are higher, or there is a safety car, and they can exploit this window to pit and put a new set [on]. I think the degradation level and thermal management of the tyre will be the key to complete the race on a one-stop.’

While the Monza track surface area is fresh in the meantime, its attributes will quickly alter, for brand-new asphalt normally progresses extremely rapidly. Since F1 is the very first significant series to race at Monza (and there had actually just been a couple of GT automobile tests before the GP) high advancement was anticipated in practice. Pirelli observed a high rate throughout FP1 and some stabilisation in FP2.

‘We didn’t have much pick-up, which is clear indication that the track can enhance and progress, end up being more grippy, for the next sessions,’ included Berra. ‘I believe the advancement will continue throughout the next couple of days, specifically throughout the race. For example, I would anticipate the 2nd stint to be much easier to handle than the very first stint.

‘The teams cannot really work to improve the graining. They just have to wait a bit for the track evolution and improvement on track conditions. We do think they can improve a bit for Sunday. I don’t believe it will vanish totally like it did at Spa.

‘You can make a difference if you are able to manage the tyres better [than others], especially with this level of graining. Here, in the past, it was easier to manage just the thermal deg [because] the graining, in general, was very low.’