Compounds in play

McLaren looked the class of the field in Qualifying with Lando Norris on pole, but the team struggled with rear grip over longer runs in the Sprint. That contrast underlines how strategy will shape Sunday.

Pirelli Motorsport Director Dario Marrafuschi said Ferrari and Haas’s decision to use the Soft in the Sprint showed the C4 could be viable for Sunday alongside Hard and Medium. “All three compounds are therefore in play for the race.”

Quickest options

The quickest strategy on paper is a one-stop starting on Medium and switching to Hard between laps 27 and 33. An alternative one-stop starts on Soft, uses it until laps 26-32 and finishes on Hard, around one second slower.

Two-stop strategies look competitive in clean air, but overtaking is notoriously difficult at Zandvoort, making track position costly. A third stint could be considered only for a Virtual Safety Car or an undercut if traffic allows.

Degradation recorded in the Sprint was thermal in nature and limited. Drivers are expected to manage tyres in the Grand Prix, meaning degradation is unlikely to be decisive for the two harder compounds.