Isola: Everyone will try to stick to one pit stop.

      In qualifying at the Dutch circuit all drivers used only the soft tyres. The C4 compound was already working at maximum efficiency on the first flying lap, although some drivers managed to show comparable times on the second lap, since the track condition gradually improved during the session.

      Mario Isola, Pirelli Motorsport director: “On a circuit where overtaking is clearly difficult, race results depend even more than usual on qualifying. It seems McLaren have a clear advantage over the others, and their drivers were separated by just 0.012 seconds, i.e. there is almost no difference.

      Behind that pair the results are very tight: for the other 18 drivers they fit into less than one and a half seconds. Therefore, all the ingredients are in place that promise fierce competition and an unpredictable race. Another factor that will affect the overall picture will be changeable weather, and there is also always a high probability of a safety car. You never get away from them at Zandvoort, as this circuit always punishes mistakes.

      Although simulations indicate that a two-stop strategy allows the Grand Prix distance to be covered a little faster, we understand that teams will try to limit themselves to a one-stop strategy, because the position a driver can gain on the first lap is extremely important.

      Therefore we believe the most likely scenario will see drivers start on the Medium compound and do the second stint on the Hard tyres, as this allows the team to cater for scenarios involving possible rain or the appearance of a safety car.

      Those who nevertheless prefer the two-stop option will most likely use all three compounds, since only McLaren and Aston Martin have two sets of Hards available, and only Isack Hadjar has two sets of Mediums.

      Raising the pit-lane speed limit from 60 to 80 km/h will have a noticeable impact on the time cost required to carry out a pit stop: it is now not 22 seconds as before, but 19 or 20. However, that is not enough to make the two-stop solution truly attractive.

      As for the ‘undercut’ tactic, i.e. an earlier pit stop, as we saw last year it works very effectively on this circuit, and this is another factor teams will take into account in their preparation for the race.”