(Motorsport-Total.com) – What is the current status of the Super-Intermediate topic? Is it coming or has the topic meanwhile been shelved? For some time now, there has been talk about introducing a single tire compound for rainy conditions, as the Full-Wet has basically never been used in more difficult conditions in recent years.
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Most of the time, the drivers were on intermediates in the rain. If the rain got heavier, there was usually no driving activity, as especially the spray kicked up posed a safety risk.
Therefore, the introduction of a Super-Intermediate instead of the two previous compounds was discussed – most recently in the spring before the season. Since then, the topic has not come up again. Has it already been shelved?
No, insists motorsport chief Dario Marrafuschi: “The Super-Intermediate is in development; this is something we are actively pursuing. We have not given up on this path,” he says in an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com Italy, a sister platform of Motorsport-Total.com in the Motorsport Network.
“We are always very open to new technologies and innovations and evaluate products that represent an improvement over the current ones. So this is definitely an option,” he emphasizes.
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Pirelli’s problem: So far, there have been hardly any rainy conditions in the 2026 Formula 1 season to evaluate the current tires with the new generation of cars. “We lack feedback on how the current cars behave in the wet with the existing product,” says Marrafuschi. In addition, a planned rain test in Bahrain had to be canceled at short notice due to the Middle East conflict.
“As a result, development under wet conditions has inevitably slowed down somewhat compared to our original plans,” emphasizes the Pirelli motorsport chief. “We are now considering whether we can at least make up one day for rain tests, maybe in summer, but since we have not yet had a rain race, of course we are missing an important puzzle piece.”
“So we are still working on the Super-Intermediate,” he clarifies. But for an introduction in the 2027 season, it might now be too tight – even though the decision is still open. “In any case, these developments for wet conditions are always shared with the FIA and Formula 1 to make the best technologically available decision.”
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