Pirelli has revealed each drivers' tyre allocation for the Monaco Grand Prix, with the majority of the field filling their selection with the new ultra-soft compound.
Pirelli has added the ultra-soft compound to its range this season with the aim of offering a tyre that is better suited to street circuits such as Monaco. The purple-banded tyre has only been used in testing so far, but is expected to offer optimum grip for a single lap around the streets of Monaco with the trade off of higher degradation. The soft and super-soft tyres are also on offer, but all the teams have opted for more ultra-softs over the other compounds.
Monaco's track surface and slow speed corners means degradation levels are low, with one-stop strategies usually preferred in order to hold track position. However, under the regulations, drivers who make Q3 in qualifying have to start the race on the same tyres they used in Q2, potentially resulting in the top ten starting on the ultra-soft compound. If degradation levels are high on the ultra-soft, it could force those drivers to switch to the slower soft tyre if they still intend to do a one-stop or take a more aggressive two-stop strategy using another set of ultra-softs and a set of super-softs.
Both Mercedes and Red Bull have both left themselves minimal wiggle room, opting to fill their total allocation of 13 tyres with 10 sets of ultra-softs. Ferrari have nine sets of ultra-soft and are bringing an extra set of softs compared to their rivals. However, ahead of qualifying the teams have to narrow their selection to just seven tyres, meaning it is likely their allocation will be in line with Mercedes and Red Bull come the race.
McLaren, which is expected to be more competitive in Monaco, has gone for a more even spread, with one set of softs, five super-softs and seven ultra-softs.