The Pirelli Scorpion KX gravel tyres for the top class of the FIA World Rally Championship WRC will make a sort of homecoming on the next round in Sardinia, after a successful debut on the previous round in Portugal. The Italian island was where Pirelli conducted much of its development testing last year in preparation for its return to the WRC for 2021.
THE PIRELLI TYRES IN SARDINIA
The gravel rally tyre from Pirelli, the Scorpion KX of WRC, is available in both hard and soft compounds. The hard, which is designed to cope with the most abrasive surfaces and deliver durability over longer stages, will be the first choice in Sardinia. The soft will be an alternative that provides optimal grip not just on wet and slick roads, but also on sandy and loose gravel surfaces, particularly during the first run on the stages. The tyre has increased reinforcement in both compounds, notably in the sidewall, to protect against cuts and lacerations.
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Terenzio Testoni, rally activity manager: “After Portugal, we’re looking forward to face another demanding gravel rally with the Scorpion KX tyres and especially our ‘home’ event, where we already gathered a lot of data during testing last year. We have also now been busy analysing all the information we gathered in Portugal which will guide the advice we provide to the teams in Sardinia. Of course, in Sardinia the temperatures can be even higher and the conditions even tougher, but this should make the hard compound tyre more favourable as opposed to the soft, for which there will again be a limited allocation.
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"This means that we can expect some different strategies among the three top teams. The new stages on the final day are very slippery and sandy, so the soft tyre could make a real difference.”
WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR
New stages have been added. After seven years at Alghero on the island's west coast, the event's base is returning to Olbia on the island's east coast this year. Many of the same stages will be repeated, particularly on Friday and Saturday, although the stages to the north of Olbia on Sunday will be unfamiliar to the current crop of drivers.
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