Romain Grosjean has suggested that Haas may tweak its approach to Formula 1 qualifying should Pirelli’s Hypersofts degrade rapidly at the Sochi Autodrom.
Pirelli has nominated the Hypersoft, Ultrasoft and Soft compounds for next weekend’s Russian Grand Prix, mirroring the choices it made in Singapore.
Under Formula 1 regulations drivers who made Q3 must start the race on the set of tyres with which they registered their best lap in Q2.
It meant that the top 10 starters in Singapore began on the Hypersoft tyre, which suffered a high rate of degradation compared to the Ultrasofts on which those starting close behind used.
The drivers who finished the race seventh, eighth and ninth started 11th, 12th and 13th, effectively overcutting those who made Q3 and were forced to start on Hypersofts.
Tyre degradation has historically been low at Sochi due to the smooth nature of the surface, though tyres can be rear-limited, and the Hypersoft is in effect two steps softer than the 2017 Ultrasoft.
“The problem in Singapore was qualifying in the top 10 with the Hypersoft, which didn’t last very long in the race compared to the Ultrasoft and the Softs,” said Grosjean. “It made the strategy very complicated.
“In Sochi, we’ll need to see how the Hypersoft performs. It’s a really good tyre on one lap, but what’s the tyre life?
“We’ll need to decide if we want to go through to Q3 in qualifying, or if there’s anything we should do differently.
“You don’t want to be qualifying in the top 10 and then not have a chance to score points in the race.”
Haas failed to score points in Singapore, falling 15 points behind Renault in the battle for fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, but Grosjean was nonetheless boosted by its overall pace.
“In Singapore we qualified eighth, almost best of the rest,” said Grosjean.
“I think the car worked very well, which is very encouraging after a difficult Monaco.
“Sochi should be a good track for us. It’s key to get the tyres to work in Russia, and that’s something we haven’t done very well in the past.
“I’m sure this year we’re going to be much better. I’m very much looking forward to getting there and enjoying it.
“We’re going to do everything we can to definitely get that fourth position in the Constructors’ Championship.”
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