Pirelli sets Americas tyres: C2 to C4 in Austin, C3 to C5 in Mexico and Brazil
Pirelli has confirmed its tyre nominations for the Americas triple-header, starting in Austin on 23 October and continuing in Mexico City and São Paulo. Austin gets C2, C3 and C4, while Mexico City and São Paulo get C3, C4 and C5. The key change from last year is that the compound gap on the Hard tyre has been dropped. These three rounds are Formula 1's next stop after Singapore.
Nominations for all three races
According to Pirelli's press release, published on 9 October 2026, the Hard, Medium and Soft allocations are as follows. Austin runs on 23-25 October, Mexico City on 30 October-1 November and São Paulo on 6-8 November.
| Grand Prix | Weekend | Hard | Medium | Soft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States (Austin) | 23-25 Oct | C2 | C3 | C4 |
| Mexico City | 30 Oct-1 Nov | C3 | C4 | C5 |
| São Paulo | 6-8 Nov | C3 | C4 | C5 |
What has changed since last year
Pirelli says the Hard in Austin was the C1 last year and moves up to the C2 this time. In Mexico City the Hard goes from the C2 to the C3, one step softer. ScuderiaFans reported that Pirelli has opted against repeating the compound gap in 2026. A compound gap means skipping a C-number between the Medium and Hard so the two tyres sit further apart in performance.
São Paulo is one step softer than last year. Pirelli noted that the Hard saw little use there last year, with teams favouring two-stop strategies on the Medium and Soft. In Mexico City, it added, teams still leaned on the softer compounds rather than saving a stop on the Hard. The C3, C4 and C5 chosen for Mexico City and São Paulo make up the softest trio in this year's range.
What to watch
The Austin weekend starts not this week but the one after next, on Friday 23 October. Only the allocations are confirmed so far, so which combination proves strongest will depend on practice data. Still, with the Hard made one step softer at two venues where it was shunned last year, the question is whether teams will find room for it in their strategies. Neither source says how many sets teams will get or whether any of these rounds uses a sprint format, so we will cover that once it is confirmed.