The Formula 1 driver is alone in his car, but how big is the 'team' behind him? A team that takes care of every detail, from the engineers who develop the car to those in charge of the logistics and the others who manage the pit stops.

Pirelli supplies tyres to all the F1 teams, but the work with the teams is only a small part of the process in which we are involved. The R&D department designs a new product starting with virtual design, i.e., the creation of a virtual tyre model that is used by all the constructors before starting the phase of making physical prototypes. These are then tested on the track by the teams and drivers who race in the World Championship. We share all information with them and they receive from us, in the first instance, the same data and the same virtual model, which is then refined on the basis of the feedback collected. If we think that this happens not only for Formula 1, but for over two hundred motorsport championships around the world, we can understand that those fifty or so professionals we see on the track at race time are the tip of the iceberg.

To this we have to add the sport's increased focus on sustainability: less rubber obviously means less material in tyre design and production. The issue of sustainability, with regard to F1 and motor racing in general, is a complex and sensitive one. Yet, it is a journey to be made, and it is a journey that involves all of Pirelli's partners.

But we at Pirelli follow over two hundred championships on four wheels, a whole universe of motorsport. Shall we talk about a complicated sport like rallying? Here you need even more versatility: you have to deal with snow, tarmac and gravel.