By Reggie Gatlin-Holt
Firestone Racing is providing more than 5,000 Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 race tires to NTT INDYCAR SERIES entries in preparation for the 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500. The race tires are designed for use in practice, qualifying, and the 500-mile race on the 2.5-mile oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Firestone Racing is once again demonstrating and accelerating the use of more sustainable materials and technologies in motorsports at this year’s event. The 2024 Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 race tire incorporates two monomers sourced from the waste residue of palm oil processing. The bio-styrene and butadiene monomers included in this year’s race tires are certified by the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) for the transparency and traceability of sustainable raw materials throughout the supply chain.*
More information on the addition of new sustainably-sourced raw materials to Firestone Firehawk race tires for 108th Running of the Indianapolis 500 is available.
Each entry will receive the following race tire allocation:
Primary (black sidewall): 37 sets per entry
- Rookies receive two extra sets
- Drivers doing a refresher receive two extra sets
- Entries participating in last chance qualifying (last row) will receive two extra sets
- Entries participating in Top 12 qualifying will receive an extra set
- Entries participating in Firestone Fast 6 will receive an additional set
Notes from Cara Krstolic, Director of Race Tire Engineering and Manufacturing:
This year’s Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 race tires were developed based on last year’s tire performance, data collected at the hybrid test last October, and feedback from teams. The tires feature very minor construction changes in the front and left rear to improve the tire contact patch. The left-side tire compounds are also slightly more durable to help mitigate wear on that side.
We were pleased with the results of last year’s Indy 500 tire that included a sustainably-sourced butadiene monomer. This year we are building on that success by using two sustainably-sourced monomers in our tires. The ISCC PLUS certified bio-styrene and butadiene used in this year’s tires are derived from the waste residue of palm oil processing.* These efforts are designed to help sustain the sport we love without sacrificing performance.
*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.
COURTESY FIRESTONE RACING COMMUNICATIONS
