Pirelli sets F1 2026 compounds, abandons C6

Pirelli has finalised its five tyre compounds for the 2026 F1 season, deciding against brining its sixth extra soft compound that was introduced this year.

The Italian manufacturer has been working on a range of tyres for the 2026 regulations, which prescribe front tyres that are 25mm narrower than the current specification, while the rears will be made 30mm narrower, in an effort to help save overall weight on the 18-inch tyres.

After finalising its tyre constructions by its 1 September deadline, Pirelli completed its last in-season test after the Mexico Grand Prix to further gather data on its tyre compounds, which need to be homologated by 15 December.

It has now announced a plan to bring five compounds to 2026 instead if six, abandoning the softest C6 compound that was used sporadically in 2025, mainly on low-impact street circuits.

The reason is that Pirelli was keen to ensure its five compounds across the range would be different enough in terms of wear and lap time delta to ensure plenty of strategic options. This season compounds like the C2 and C3 were very similar in lap time, meaning that at some races Pirelli decided to skip a compound, for example by bringing the C1, C3 and C4 at Spa and Austin.

By spacing out the range of compounds further, it was felt that the 2026 C6 compound would be too close to the C5.