Pirelli chief Mario Isola says lap times in Formula 1 should reduce by 1.5 seconds in 2018, due to the rate of car development and the move to softer compounds. Pirelli, the sport’s sole supplier since 2011, adopted a relatively conservative stance in 2017, amid Formula 1’s widespread regulation changes, which featured wider tyres and higher downforce levels, leading to faster cars. As a reaction to a spate of one-stop races through 2017, Pirelli has made its compounds one step softer, and also introduced a new pink-banded Hypersoft tyre, which is set to debut in Monaco. “The Hypersoft in Abu Dhabi was one second quicker than the Ultrasoft so it’s quite an extreme...
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