It has surprisingly been announced that there will be three tyre manufacturers competing in Formula Virtual from 2019 on wards. This comes as a shock to the paddock as it was recently revealed that Goodyear would be the sole supplier in 2019 with an additional fifth tyre compound. It appears the Formula Virtual Association have taken a u-turn and opted to sign two new tyre suppliers to complete against Goodyear.
Bridgestone and Michelin will return to Formula Virtual from 2019 on wards to compete with Goodyear. Bridgestone last competed in Formula Virtual in 2014, where the Japanese tyre company were the sole supplier of tyres for 2013 and 2014. Michelin made their debut in 2015 before departing at the end of 2016, competing with Firestone along the way. However the Japanese and French tyre company's will re-join Formula Virtual for 2019. The 2019 season was set to feature five tyre compounds, the fifth was to be called the 'extra hard' tyre. This has now been scrapped, in fact instead simplified and trimmed to just three dry tyre compounds. Goodyear, Bridgestone, and Michelin will each contribute three tyre compounds each. Soft, Medium, and Hard are the compounds confirmed for the 2019 season. The wet tyre will also be included. It is believed that the FVA fell out of love for the one tyre supplier, multiple compound rule, and believe that more suppliers will give the teams more creative freedom. It is expected that each supplier will have it's advantages and disadvantages, while each of their compounds will have different characteristics too. Since 2016 tyre compounds have distinctly been recognized by there colors on the tyre wall, but it is still to be revealed how this will look in 2019. Formula Virtual have gone through many tyre changes during it's short six year history, but the FVA is sure allowing extra tyre suppliers is the best way forward. The 2019 season will feature the most tyre suppliers and compounds in it's history. More details are expected to be revealed over the coming weeks. Comments are closed.
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