We have said it once but we will say it again- Formula one cars might be a technical marvel and a performance machine of the future but it is nothing without the tyre compounds that have been carefully designed and engineered because without it the F1 cars cannot exert their true potential power.
The tyres play a key role in helping each formula one team uniquely to gain upper hand in a race. The tyres come in different compounds which have specific characteristics that could be used as a strategic move to win a race by gaining a faster lap time.
Formula one tyres have gone through several changes in the past in its approximate 70 years of history. Different tyre manufacturers came with different tyre specifications from the time of this sport.
F1 tyres until the late 1960s and early 1970s were using normal grooved tyres. However, an important discovery was made by the tyre manufacturers with the help of the teams that revolutionized racing. The discovery was that the tyres with no tread patterns performed well and gave maximised traction or grip in dry weather conditions. This discovery completely changed racing.
Also See: Everything You Need To Know About F1 Car Tyres
However, Formula one got rid of the 'slick's and re- introduced the 'grooved' tyres in the 1988 season. The purpose of this move was to increase the cornering speeds. The front tyres of the Formula one cars were fitted with tyres that had three parallel grooves while the rear tyres had four parallel grooves. This was done to increase the cornering speed meaning that the cars would now enter and exit a corner faster than before, when they had 'slicks.'
The longitudinal grooves had to at least 2.5mm deep and spaced apart 50 mm. This decision resulted in the tyre manufacturers to face new problems.
Later from the late 90's until 2008, regulations regarding the tyres got tighter. The F1 cars had to have minimum of four grooves to slow down the cars. The tyre sizes were also specified depending on the weather conditions. The rules and regulations became more strict and tighter in 2005 when the tyre changes performed in the pit lane was disallowed which meant that the cars had to complete without changing the tyres that were not designed for such long distance. The 2005 regulation was over turned in the year 2006 after some major controversy about the 2005 US Grand Prix.
In 2009 Slick tyres were reintroduced along with other changes to stabilize the grip while overtaking maneuvers were performed. Later from 2011 onward, Pirelli continues to be the only provider of tyres for Formula one racing.
