Pre-Race Notes: Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix
Both the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and INDY NXT by Firestone take to the downtown streets of Detroit, Michigan, this weekend at the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear. They will race on the 1.645-mile temporary street course that runs counterclockwise with nine turns (a mix of 6 left and 3 right slow and high-speed corners), and features fast and technical sections, elevation changes, as well as a unique split pit lane.
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Firestone is providing 1,500 primary and alternate race tires to teams and drivers for practice, qualifying (including the Firestone Fast Six), and Sunday’s 100-lap (164.5 miles) street race.
For a third year at Detroit, the Firestone Firehawk alternate tire’s sidewall construction incorporates natural rubber sourced from sustainable guayule shrubs grown at the Bridgestone research facility in Arizona. These alternate tires are easily identified by the green sidewall stripe.
All Firestone Firehawk race tires are manufactured at the Advanced Tire Production Center (ATPC) in Akron, Ohio, which opened in 2022 and is certified by the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) system for its transparency and traceability of sustainable raw materials throughout the supply chain.*
Each NTT INDYCAR SERIES entry will receive the following allocation:
Primary (black): 5 sets per entry (Rookies receive an extra set for Practice 1)
- Alternate (guayule green sidewall): 5 sets per entry
- Rain (gray): 5 sets per entry
Firestone Racing provides a real-time tire tracker at Livetiming.net/firestone for media and fans to follow track tire strategies in qualifying and the race. As per INDYCAR rules, each entry must use one set of primary and one set of new (sticker) alternate tires for at least two laps in the race.
Additional Notes from Cara Krstolic, Director of Race Tire Engineering and Manufacturing,
“The Firestone Firehawk race tires we brought for this year’s Detroit Grand Prix are the same design, construction, and compound as those we provide for all 2025 street races. The one difference from the 2024 Detroit race is the update we made to the compound on the alternate green sidewall (guayule rubber) tire which we expect will show some increased grip and wear. The drop off gap between the primary and alternate tire will be narrower than what we saw in the first two street races of the year. The characteristics of this street circuit with a mix of asphalt and grooved concrete make tire management a challenge for drivers, and tire degradation will likely be the main topic of conversation.”
INDY NXT by Firestone
Firestone is supplying approximately 400 race tires to INDY NXT by Firestone teams and drivers for practice, qualifying, and the 45-lap (74 miles or 55-minute) race on Sunday morning.
Each INDY NXT by Firestone entry will receive the following Firestone Firehawk race tire allocation:
- Primary: 5 sets per entry (2 carryover sets from the Indianapolis event may be used in practice)
- Rain: 2 sets per entry
“The tire provided for this weekend’s INDY NXT by Firestone race on the downtown Detroit street circuit has that same construction and compound as last year and we expect it to perform similarly. All street and road course tires for 2025 INDY NXT competition will remain the same, with the exception of those made specifically for the demanding Road America track.”
*The recycled material is allocated using the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) mass balance approach. Find out more about ISCC PLUS certification at: www.iscc-system.org.