Teams unanimously veto 2020 Pirelli Formula 1 tyres

Formula 1 will stick with 2019-specification Pirelli rubber next year, after teams unanimously voted to reject the new tyres that were being prepared for 2020

The prototype 2020 spec - which was designed to reduce tyre degradation, provide a wider working range of temperature and lower overheating in dirty air - had made its race weekend debut during free practice in Austin, but earned largely negative reviews from the drivers who had sampled it.

As a result, the possibility of sticking with this year's tyres was broached, and while Pirelli said it would be open to this, it was hopeful that the two-day post-season test in Abu Dhabi would offer a more representative view of the new tyres.

However, Haas driver and GPDA director Romain Grosjean said he was left with largely the same impression at Yas Marina - and the FIA has now confirmed the teams took a "unanimous decision" to stick with the 2019 spec.

"The FIA would like to thank both Pirelli and all the teams for their work and collaboration to improve the tyres for the 2020 season and beyond," the FIA statement added.

"In any case, the lessons learnt will be invaluable for the further improvement of the tyres in the future."

In a statement, Pirelli said it had input into the decision and that "several different factors" were taken into account.

Pirelli elaborated: "The teams will no longer have to modify the designs of their 2020 cars, which would otherwise have been necessary to accommodate the different profile of the 2020 tyre construction.

"This will now allow the teams to continue the development of their 2020 cars - which are already at an advanced stage - uninterrupted.

"The use of the 2019 tyres also guarantees the teams stability, with the advantage of using a well-known product during the final season of the current regulations."

Pirelli stressed that while the 2020 spec has been scrapped, the work that went into it will be used in the development of its all-new 18-inch tyres that will debut the year after.

"The new solutions for the 2020 construction tyres tested last week in Abu Dhabi, which Pirelli will continue to develop further for the 18-inch era from 2021, allow lower tyre pressures than those used at the moment to be run," the manufacturer added.

"As a result, they are able to compensate for the increased performance expected from the next generation of cars."