Pirelli talked about the strategy options for the race

      Mario Isola, head of Pirelli's racing division, commented on the qualifying results for the Australian Grand Prix and spoke about possible strategy options for the race, provided it is dry in Melbourne on Sunday.

      Mario Isola: "It was a very spectacular and tight fight in qualifying, which is supported by the numbers. In the second part, fifteen riders were separated by just over seven tenths of a second, seven teams made it to the top ten, and nine made it to the second part of qualifying. The final turned out to be exciting, because the intermediate pole changed hands four times.

      Tomorrow looks unpredictable, primarily due to the fact that the forecast promises heavy rain in the morning, which should ease by noon. Therefore, we can expect three possible scenarios. The first one is that the race will take place on a completely wet track, and then anything can happen. This will be an opportunity for us to evaluate the new rain tires, modified this season with a slightly different tread pattern.

      The second scenario is a race on a completely dry track. With this option, based on the fact that during these two days we saw less granulation of the rubber compared to previous years, the option with one pit stop may be the fastest – starting on Medium and switching to Hard. Compositions C3 and C4 have almost identical speeds with practically no granulation.

      Moreover, if the race is held on a dry track, it is necessary to take into account the possible change in the condition of the asphalt due to possible earlier rain and lower temperatures. Such conditions can contribute to tire granulation. In this case, probably the most popular strategy will be two pit stops with Medium and Hard compounds.

      The third scenario assumes that the race will be held in mixed conditions. Starting on a wet or drying track will require intermediate tires, followed by switching to slicks. In this case, riders can try to extend the first leg on intermediate tires as long as possible, so that they can immediately switch to Hard tires.

      The Soft team can only come into play if they switch to slicks in the final stage of the race. Whatever happens, it looks like it's going to be a fun day!"