"Bit more encouraged by them" - Ferrari driver feels new Pirelli tires suit 2022 F1 cars well

Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz feels the new Pirelli tires to be used for the forthcoming F1 2022 season allow drivers to push more than previous generations.

To align with the new regulatory changes brought in by F1 for the 2022 season and onwards, Pirelli had to rework their tire formula and develop rubber for the new 18-inch wheels that were coming in.

The Italian tire manufacturer had expected the new formula to reduce the amount of degradation experienced by drivers during races. Now, this seems to have translated on track during pre-season testing in Barcelona.

Sainz spoke to the media about the new tires with optimism that could be vital to Ferrari's resurgence in 2022. He said:

“I am maybe a bit more encouraged by them just because they did quite a bit of testing last year – I think I did three or four days in total with the compounds and they look like they are suiting well this new generation of cars.”

The Spaniard went on to add:

“They look to be at least allowing you to push a bit more on them compared to other years – maybe a bit less overheating, a bit less degradation. But they’re still a tire that degrades, a tire that overheats… but the scale of it, for me personally, I feel like it’s a bit better and the work done by Pirelli last year and the development seems to start to pay off a bit.”

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Ferrari's Carlos Sainz "a bit surprised" with varying interpretations of F1 2022 regulations

Ferrari's Carlos Sainz has been taken aback by the many different interpretations of F1's new regulations by different teams on the grid.

The sport has been technically overhauled with new rule changes that promise to make things more competitive again. When asked to share his opinion on these changes being translated into real designs during the launch event of the Ferrari F1-75, the 27-year-old said:

“There have been different interpretations of the rules already with the first seven cars that have been presented. I am a bit surprised because I thought that everyone was going to come out with more similar cars. And the regulations were so scripted that we all thought more or less everyone was going to come out with a similar design and actually, in the areas where you could be a bit different, the cars are really different.”

Meanwhile, Sainz was the ninth fastest driver in the first pre-season testing session in Barcelona with a best time of 1:20.072, behind team-mate Charles Leclerc, who clocked in a best lap time of 1:19.689.