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FIA president Jean Todt has confirmed that multiple companies are vying to become an F1 tyre. The deadline to submit an application closed on Friday, at the end of August.

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Current tyre supplier, Pirelli’s contract will expire at the end of the 2019 season. The Italian manufacturer has been the tyre supplier to all teams since 2011.

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As part of the planned revision of the F1 technical regulations for 2021, the FIA confirmed in July it would be switching to 18-inch wheels for that season, one year after the new tyre supply contract will begin.

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This meant that any interested party would have to create a tyre for 13-inch wheels for 2020 before the producing a new tyre from 2021, with this requirement acting as one factor in Michelin’s decision not to bid for the contract.

The deadline to submit an application for the new tyre contract passed at midnight on Friday, with Pirelli expected to be joined in the running by Korean company Hankook.

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With regard to the 2020 tyre plans, Todt admitted that he did not have any details on the companies who submitted a proposal. However, he knew there was more than one party involved in the process.

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“The ending of the tender was last night at midnight,” Todt said. “I don’t have the result yet of who has been applying for the tender. I know it’s more than one.

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“But I knew since a while now, before August, that Michelin were not going to compete for the tender.”

Another question that remains to be answered is, will we have another tyre war like between 2001 to 2006?

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Dhruv George

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Dhruv George is EssentiallySports’ foremost authority on motorsport and a founding member of the outlet’s NASCAR desk. A Journalism graduate fluent in English and French, he brings over eight years of motorsports journalism experience covering everything from high-octane NASCAR battles to the finesse of Formula 1 and MotoGP. His extensive paddock access has earned him exclusive interviews with top names such as Know more

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