Pirelli has confirmed the tyre compound options for the Miami Grand Prix, with teams receiving the three softest mixtures: C3, C4 and C5. The first United States race of the Formula 1 season takes place next weekend in Florida following a lengthy break caused by the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix. The championship resumes on a street circuit built around the Hard Rock Stadium, featuring a 5.412-kilometre layout over 57 laps.

The Miami International Autodrome presents 19 corners and three long straights on asphalt resurfaced in 2023. The track surface has low roughness and gains grip as the weekend progresses. A notable characteristic observed last year was the circuit’s ability to dry very quickly, demonstrated during the Sprint when drivers switched from intermediates to slicks despite heavy rain before the start.

Fewer uncertainties are expected in race strategy due to historically limited tyre degradation in Miami, allowing drivers to extend stints and complete the Grand Prix with only a single pit stop. Neutralisations remain a factor on Sunday, as precision is crucial on any street circuit. Last year’s victory by Oscar Piastri followed a straightforward approach, with drivers splitting between Medium and Hard compounds before a mid-distance pit window.

Of the four editions held around the Dolphins’ stadium, half have been won by Max Verstappen, while McLaren drivers have shared the last two victories. Lando Norris won in 2024 followed by Piastri in 2025, though neither McLaren driver has ever secured pole position at this event. Verstappen has two poles, with the others taken by Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez.

The entire Miami weekend operates under the Pirelli banner, as all support categories are supplied by the Italian company. The second round of Formula 2 has been relocated to Florida, joined by the McLaren Trophy North America and the Porsche Carrera Cup North America. The latter series now receives Pirelli’s P Zero DHG compound introduced last season.

The Miami podium cap, designed by Denis Dekovic for Pirelli Design, draws inspiration from a sea predator with grey shades resembling shark skin. The animal is also referenced by visor stickers depicting jaws or body. The special edition cap is already available for purchase online.

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Kumho Tire USA has introduced the all-new Road Venture HT, an advanced all-season highway-terrain tyre designed for light trucks and SUVs. Engineered with innovative technology, this latest offering caters to drivers seeking dependable everyday performance. The tyre provides enhanced wet and snow traction, extended tread life, a smooth and quiet ride and is also compatible with electric vehicles.

Developed as a next-generation all-season product, the Road Venture HT features an optimised structural design and a new polymer compound with High Dispersible Micro Silica to boost wear resistance. This results in a 10 percent improvement in tread life over its predecessor. Additional technologies including 3D chamfers, integrated tie-bar noise reduction and reinforced polyester body plies help ensure a quiet ride, improved sidewall stiffness and better cornering stability.

For wet-road confidence, the tyre incorporates a high-grip resin and four wide circumferential grooves to evacuate water efficiently. Wider lateral shoulder grooves, multi-angle sipes and independent tread blocks with enhanced biting edges deliver superior traction and stability. A zigzag tread design and waved 3D interlocking sipes provide strong snow traction, earning the tyre Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake certification. This sets a new benchmark as most all-season tyres lack true winter rating, making the Road Venture HT a uniquely versatile all-weather solution.

Kumho Tire USA conducted independent third-party testing against leading competitors, with results showing the Road Venture HT outperformed rivals in ride comfort, wet handling and dry and wet braking. Available starting in June in over 40 sizes from 15 to 22 inches, the tyre comes with a 75,000-mile (approximately 120,700 km) limited treadwear warranty for P-metric sizes and 50,000 miles (approximately 80,467 km) for LT-metric sizes. A road hazard warranty and a 30-day satisfaction guarantee are also included.

Shawn Denlein, President – Sales and Marketing, Kumho Tire U.S.A., said, "With significant enhancements in structure, design and materials, the Road Venture HT delivers exceptional performance, durability and comfort so light truck and SUV vehicle owners can drive with confidence year-round. The HT is another example of KUMHO's commitment to performance without compromise, delivering premium-level products at a price point that offers outstanding value."

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The AZUR network has declared 10 May 2026 a pivotal date for Germany’s ecological balance, marking the country’s Overshoot Day, which is calculated by the Global Footprint Network. From this point forward, the nation’s resource consumption for the remainder of the year will be living beyond environmental means. If the global population mirrored German habits, three planets would be required to meet resource demands. For AZUR, this calculation serves as an urgent directive for the tyre industry to adopt a circular economy without delay.

The tyre sector stands at the centre of this challenge, with roughly 600,000 tonnes of used tyres generated annually in Germany. According to AZUR, this waste stream represents either a severe environmental liability or a valuable secondary raw material source, depending on handling. The early Overshoot Day underscores that the linear production model has reached its limit, compelling a consistent ecological transformation.

Within its network, AZUR promotes three strategic approaches to tyre recycling. Retreading old tyres conserves up to 70 percent of the energy and virgin materials like natural rubber and steel compared to new production. Mechanical recycling recovers rubber meal and granules, keeping resources circulating rather than sending them to incinerators. Chemical recycling via pyrolysis breaks down tyres under heat without oxygen to produce pyrolysis oil, recovered carbon black and gas.

The 10^th of May thus stands as a reminder that resource inefficiency is no longer acceptable. By uniting industry specialists, AZUR aims to shrink mobility’s ecological footprint and progressively push Germany’s Overshoot Day later into the winter months in the years ahead.

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The Tire Recycling Foundation (TRF) has unveiled the recipients of its inaugural Circle of Change Awards, recognising initiatives that convert end-of-life tyres into sustainable materials with tangible community and environmental benefits. The honours, announced during a luncheon at the recently concluded 10th Tire Recycling Conference in Denver, Colorado, highlight growing momentum in end-use markets for recycled tire products.

North Carolina earned the Circular Economy Trailblazer Award for modernising its scrap tyre programme, including a revised funding framework that stabilises county recycling efforts, curbs illegal dumping and establishes a platform to incorporate tyre-derived materials into public works. The Innovation in End-Use Technology Award went to LHB Engineering and the St. Paul Port Authority for redeveloping a brownfield site in Minnesota, where roughly 30,000 yards of tyre-derived aggregate now support an underground stormwater system protecting the Mississippi River from runoff.

Michigan EGLE and its public, private and academic partners received the Market Development Excellence Award for a multi-sector effort using demonstrations and field data to advance tyre-derived aggregate, rubber-modified asphalt and porous pavements. The Value Chain Collaboration Award was presented to Bolder Industries and Pirelli Tire LLC for a closed-loop system that transforms manufacturing scrap tyres into recovered carbon black for new commercial tyre production, reducing emissions and resource use at scale.

The 2026 winning projects demonstrate that tyre recycling and tyre-derived products are established pillars of sustainability and economic growth, reinforcing the value of active state end-of-life tyre programmes focused on innovative market creation. The TRF Circle of Change Awards programme spans four national categories designed to spotlight leadership in advancing tyre recycling and the circular economy.

Stephanie Mull, Executive Director, Tire Recycling Foundation, said, “Every end-of-life tyre represents an opportunity to transform what would have been considered waste into something that strengthens our communities. This year’s winners are proof that when the industry works together, tyre recycling can simultaneously strengthen infrastructure, drive meaningful environmental progress and support local economies.”

Dick Gust, President, Tire Recycling Foundation, said, “What stands out about the 2026 winners is how embedded tyre recycling has become in real-world decision making. The success of these projects sends a clear signal that when recyclers, engineers, transportation agencies, state and local governments, manufacturers and private industry work together, end-use markets grow. That’s the integrated approach we need to continue building on.”

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Prinx Chengshan showcased its latest off-the-road tyre innovations at the 16th China (Guangrao) International Rubber Tire & Auto Parts Expo (Guangrao Tire Expo), which opened on 15 May. The event has established itself as one of China’s largest and most influential professional exhibitions in the rubber and tyre industry, focusing on uniting global tyre resources and fostering collaborative innovation and high-quality development.

The manufacturer’s exhibition focused on the Chengshan brand’s lineup of all-steel OTR and agricultural radial tyres. For heavy mining applications, the ET05/ET05A/ET16/ET17 wide-body dump truck tyres with deep transverse grooves offer strong traction on soft, uneven surfaces while preventing slippage. An all-terrain crane tyre, EC01, featured a non-directional tread and sidewall heat dissipation holes, balancing grip with temperature control for smooth travel between paved and unpaved roads. The ELD11/ELD12 loader tyres emphasised wear resistance and load stability under extreme conditions, and the ESM01 underground scraper tyre featured an ultra-cut-resistant compound to protect against sharp rocks in tunnel and mine settings.

Agricultural needs were addressed with the TX600 radial tyre, built for tractors operating on expanding modern farms. Large central tread blocks and flexible sidewalls support stable high-speed transit, while reinforced base structures and puncture-resistant materials allow for continuous work in fields containing crop straw and gravel.

Responding to growing OTR demand, Prinx Chengshan has accelerated its high-end product development to support domestic substitution in large machinery. A new green intelligent factory, representing an investment exceeding RMB 1.1 billion (approximately USD 161.75 million) across over 100,000 square metres, began operations in 2025 with the rollout of its first tyre. The facility is designed to produce 84,000 all-steel OTR tyres and 10,000 giant tyres annually for mines, construction sites, ports, airports, agriculture and industrial use.

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