Formula 1 teams will have to deal with a major overhaul in tyre design and regulations for 2021 as part of the wider effort to improve the racing.
On Friday, the FIA opened the tender for possible suppliers from 2020-2023 with current provider Pirelli previously stating they would be willing to continue and radically change the tyres thanks to developments in technology.
Laying out the conditions of the tender, the governing body appeared to match many of the things the Italian company has suggested previously, including confirming a switch to 18-inch rims from 13, something Pirelli demonstrated back in 2014.
The front tyres will also be narrowed from the current 305mm to 270mm with the rears remaining the current 405mm in width that was introduced at the start of 2017.
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Also mentioned is a long-standing idea of banning tyre blankets, which teams currently use to pre-heat the compounds to around the operating temperature, thus making it easier for drivers when they leave the pits.
The tender document read: “Tyres should provide safe performance when leaving the pits cold and the glass transition temperature must be chosen so that the tyres are never in a ‘glassy state’ when either the ambient or the track temperature is above 10 degrees centigrade.
“For winter testing a specific low-temperature tyre will be required. This will form the bulk of supply to the teams for European winter testing with a limited number of race compounds available.
“Wet and intermediate tyres should also be capable of running without the need for pre-heating.”
Three compounds will continue to be made available at each race, carrying the names of Soft, Medium and Hard, and the FIA wants a supplier that can provide a product that can “create the maximum number of race strategies yielding race times such that multi-stop strategies provide just enough potential of a beneficial outcome to encourage the greatest variety in the racing spectacle.”