The British Grand Prix is the first of the two races that will have Pirelli as title sponsor this year. The Italian company will also lend its name to the Italian Grand Prix, thus linking its brand to the two historic races with the highest number of editions in the Formula 1 World Championship.

The British and Italian rounds are the only two races to have been held uninterrupted every year since the championship began in 1950, retaining the same title. The very first Formula 1 race at Silverstone was won on Pirelli Stella Bianca tyres by Giuseppe Farina, driving an Alfa Romeo.

The upcoming event will be the 77th edition of the British Grand Prix, the 60th under this name at Silverstone, and the 518th race in which Pirelli has been present in the championship. The track, located north of Northampton, is one of the most frequently used in the motorsport world. The circuit is 5.891 km long and the last major revision to its layout took place in 2010, when a new section between Abbey and Brooklands was introduced.

Today, the track features 18 corners (10 right-handers and 8 left-handers) some of which generate very high lateral forces, with rapid direction changes at high speed. Sequences such as Maggotts-Becketts-Chapel, combined with the straights, led Lewis Hamilton, the driver with the most wins at Silverstone, to say that driving here is like being in the cockpit of a fighter jet.

The selection for the weekend consists of the hardest compounds in the range. C1, C2 and C3 have been chosen due to the high severity of the circuit, which causes tyre degradation. The accelerations reached in some sections exceed 5g, similar to what is seen at Suzuka and Spa. The front axle is the most stressed, with the left-front tyre particularly prone to wear due to the predominance of right-hand corners.

The track surface is not abrasive and has relatively low roughness. It already offers a good level of grip thanks to the continuous use of the circuit throughout the year for both two- and four-wheel competitions.

Taking all factors into account, we expect teams to attempt to complete Sunday's race with a one-stop strategy, using the two compounds with greater grip, C2 and C3. The latter is the only option that has shown some light graining in past years, while C1 and C2 have proved to be more mechanically consistent. The white-hard tyre is very likely to be used in FP1, as this year the weekend features a Sprint format.

Wet tyres may also come into play in Britain. For two consecutive years, it has rained on Sunday, leading drivers to use the Cinturato Intermediate tyres. The British weather is famously unpredictable, and even in summer, showers are not uncommon.

On the Tuesday and Wednesday following the race weekend, Pirelli will remain at Silverstone for development testing of next year's dry-weather tyres, supported by Mercedes and Williams.

Last year's Grand Prix featured variable weather and, throughout the first half of the race, the Cinturato Intermediate tyres were used. At the start of the formation lap, all drivers were on the green wet tyres, but before the actual start five cars switched to slicks. Rain then returned to the circuit, forcing everyone back onto intermediates. In the closing stages, conditions allowed for slicks again, with Medium and Soft compounds chosen by most drivers to reach the chequered flag.

A 76-year journey through history is required to review the roll of honour of the British Grand Prix. The race has been held at Silverstone 59 times and has also taken place at Aintree for five years and Brands Hatch for twelve. The driver with the most wins at Silverstone is Lewis Hamilton with nine victories. Jim Clark and Alain Prost are next with five British Grand Prix wins each. Scuderia Ferrari holds the record among constructors with 18 wins, three more than McLaren.

The British Grand Prix podium trophy was created by artist Paul Oz on commission from Pirelli. Starting from a digital model of a Formula 1 car's front wing, the sculptor has shaped an organic composition in which the various elements combine to evoke the evolution of the Silverstone circuit from former airfield to modern race track. The British flag takes form through structural aluminium elements, a material historically associated with aviation, while the red and blue inserts of the Union Flag are made from carbon fibre, an iconic material of modern Formula 1 engineering, thus creating a material dialogue between past and innovation.

The Marshal Award, which will be presented to a representative of the marshals before Sunday's drivers' parade, has been commissioned by Pirelli from the Italian company Bartoccini Premiazioni in collaboration with Stefano Zuech. In this case too, the trophy references the Silverstone circuit, reproducing its layout, enhanced by a series of stars along its perimeter symbolising the marshals committed to ensuring safety. The front combines carbon fibre and stainless steel, while the rear features the British flag, continuing the identity reference already present in the podium trophy.

There will be a special podium cap for the weekend in which Pirelli is the title sponsor. The drivers on the Silverstone podium this year will wear a special yellow cap featuring a houndstooth pattern, a design very popular in Britain.