Pirelli admit "mixed" reaction to new 2020 rubber

Pirelli has admitted that there has been a "mixed" reaction to the new 2020 rubber after teams tested them in Abu Dhabi this week. Mario Isola, Pirelli’s Head of F1 and Car Racing was pleased with the amount of testing done but wasn't as happy about the response. 

“Mixed," Isola said to Formula1.com when he was asked about the team's reaction. 

“Because some of [the drivers] found an improvement in some characteristics of the tyre or some compounds but not an improvement on some other characteristics – or in some cases the new tyres are not working at the expected level. So that’s why it will not be very easy to understand the real performance of the tyres." 

The testing session was held over two days and many think that it is not enough time for a valuable testing session. 

“The current cars are very sophisticated – it’s very difficult,” he added. “Every time you change a little bit – and the tyres are an important part of the car – the feeling and the reaction is huge. So we need to sit down, look at the data, cross the data with the drivers’ feedback – which is also an important part of our job – and finally understand which is the best solution, together with the rest of the sport.”

It is still a long way before the 2020 season starts and Pirelli have a long time to look at the data they picked up over the last few days. Teams and the FIA will sit down with Pirelli at some point and talk about using the 2019 compounds for 2020 or to go ahead with the new rubber.