How Pirelli’s New C6 Tyre Shook Up Imola GP Qualifying and What It Means for the Race

Pirelli’s C6 tyre made a notable debut at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, shaking up qualifying at Imola. The new super-soft compound was initially scheduled to appear later in the season for circuits like Monaco and Singapore.

However, teams found earlier in 2025 that tyre choices had grown too similar, leading Pirelli to introduce the C6 sooner than expected. The aim was to create more uncertainty and bring fresh strategy choices to races, breaking the trend of predictable one-stop races.

Imola presented a challenging test for the C6. During qualifying on May 18, 2025, many teams struggled to find the right setup.

Williams driver Alex Albon, who qualified seventh, said that understanding the C6 was difficult. The compound’s softness meant it gave good grip on low-speed corners but tended to degrade quickly, especially through Imola’s high-speed curves. For more details on tyre degradation in Formula 1, check out this technical analysis by the FIA.

Some drivers, like George Russell from Mercedes and both Aston Martin drivers, opted to use medium tyres instead, hoping for better durability. This decision, though, risked compromising strategy for Sunday’s race.

The tyre rules only allow teams 13 sets of slicks for the whole weekend, covering three available compounds. This limitation forced teams to gamble during qualifying.

Fernando Alonso explained the confusion by saying Aston Martin ran both mediums and softs in each session, just to cover all possibilities. According to Alonso, this strategy meant sacrificing one set of hard tyres for the race, a risk they were willing to take at a track where overtaking is tough. For further insights into race strategy, visit MIT’s Motorsports Analytics Lab.

Max Verstappen, who qualified second, admitted he could have tried a more aggressive tyre choice to grab pole but opted to keep his best tyres for the race. He pointed out that performance on Saturday does not guarantee points on Sunday, especially at Imola where the pit lane is long and makes extra stops costly.

Carlos Sainz, who was fastest in Q2 but finished Q3 in sixth, noted that the C5 (last year’s softest tyre) might have been even quicker for a single lap. However, teams judged that saving fresh tyres for the race was more valuable.

The main challenge for teams is that Imola’s 28-second pit lane time loss drives them to plan for just one stop. Even with a new super-soft tyre like the C6, making two stops is rarely worth the risk in terms of lost track position.

Some teams that used up their mediums or softs in qualifying might struggle on race day if tyre degradation turns out to be high. For a deeper dive into tyre performance metrics, explore SAE International’s research on motorsport tyres.

Looking ahead, Pirelli may bring the C6 to more tracks such as Baku and continue pushing its approach of skipping some compounds to add randomness.

If the experiment at Imola pays off—meaning those who gambled in qualifying are not punished in the race—teams might become more adventurous with tyre choices as the season moves forward.

The C6’s future will depend on whether it truly delivers fresh strategy options without making racing too unpredictable or unmanageable. More insights into the initial concerns around the tyre can be found in discussions about the Pirelli C6 Imola failure. For additional context on tyre development in Formula 1, refer to Pirelli’s official motorsport page.