New Tyre Coming for Supercars

A late Friday tyre test has re-affirmed the possibility of a significant change to the tyre compound for Supercars in 2025. There will be just one for a start. 

Supercars is preparing for life with a single compound of Dunlop tyre if the next round of tests match those already completed, including the half hour session late on Friday night at Sydney Motorsport Park. 

Supercars’ tech boss, Tim Edwards, said all the early signs were promising and that the late-night test on Friday confirmed the results of the earlier test at Queensland Raceway.

At Sydney Motorsport Park, two Fords and two Chevs ran the session after the opening 90-minute practice session. 

“We’ve done two tests and six drivers have run with it now,” he said.

“We’ve got a couple more tests planned, so hopefully by the time we get through our evaluation of it, maybe 10 drivers will have run on it, and obviously several teams, so that will give us a good data point from different drivers, different teams, different tracks. 

“It’s around October where we’ve got to make our commitment for whatever tyres we want building for the first round of next year, so we’ve got a bit of a window, but it looks very promising so far.”

Tyres have long been a discussion in Supercars, with many wanting tyres that go off to improve the racing, while others believe something more durable is more desirable.

What Supercars is looking for is a combination of the two paths, and finding a tyre than can be driven hard without affecting the life of the tyre. 

Shane van Gisbergen brought tyres into the spotlight after his NASCAR debut last season when he talked about being able to drive hard as soon as a tyre was put on the car, while in Supercars he had to tip-toe around the first few laps to get the best out of the tyre. 

Dunlop was challenged with developing a new tyre compound – the case is still the same – under the guidance of Edwards who only stepped into the Supercars’ role at the start of the season. 

The tyre being tested is not what Dunlop would do if it was given complete freedom, but it appears to be hitting the mark. 

“We’re still navigating through it, but certainly, the signs at the moment is very promising,” Edwards said.

“Dunlop listened to what we’ve been after, and this is the tyre they’ve presented and they’ve done a really good job.”

READ THE PIASTRI VICTORY ISSUE OF AUTO ACTION DIGITAL HERE

Don’t forget the print edition of Auto Action available via subscription here. For more of the latest motorsport news, subscribe to AUTO ACTION magazine.