Bridgestone has unveiled the first ever Gen4 Formula E tyre as it embarks on an at least four year programme of being the official rubber provider to the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.
The Japanese company, which won the official tender in 2024, revealed its plans at a launch in Rome today, as it become the first tyre technology provider to supply two distinct specs of rubber for the world’s only all-electric world championship.
The GEN4 car, which can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in just 1.8 seconds and has a top speed of 335 km/h and 600kW (815bhp) of peak power and All – Wheel Drive, will have significant vehicle dynamic demands.
To meet these high-performance requirements, Bridgestone has developed “POTENZA GEN4” with what the company describes as a ‘wide adaptability to diverse road and weather conditions worldwide, and durability to maintain high performance from the start to the end of races.’
Additionally, Bridgestone has newly developed POTENZA GEN4 for TYPHOON TYRE 4 rain tyre, which enables ‘stable driving even in heavy rain.
Bridgestone has also achieved a ‘65% 5 ratio of recycled and renewable materials allocation to every tyre’ Bridgestone has used raw materials such as carbon black derived from pyrolysis oil via end-of-life tyres and silica derived from rice husks.
The natural rubber used is sourced from supply chains that have undergone due diligence by Bridgestone, comply with the GPSNR* 7 Assurance System, and are verified by a third party.
Additionally, to achieve carbon neutrality in tyre manufacturing, 100% renewable energy is allocated for both heat and electricity used in production, and CO ₂ emissions are able to be reduced by promoting low – carbon transportation for logistics. In addition, Bridgestone is advancing sustainability initiatives across its entire value chain through ‘co-creation with partners, including initiatives such as chemical recycling of end-of-life tyres.’
Speaking of Bridgestone’s entry in ot Formula E, its Global CEO and Representative Executive Officer of Bridgestone Corporation, Yasuhiro Morita, said it was an “exciting re -entry that embodies Bridgestone’s history of passion and innovation.
“Under our Mission “Serving Society with Superior Quality,” we have continued to push the limits with an insatiable quest for performance and a sense of responsibility for a better future through motorsport activities.
“On the supreme stage of Formula E, we will further evolve the balance of performance and sustainability and pioneer a new future for mobility. Together with organisers, teams, drivers, partners, and fans, we look forward to creating a new future.”
Bridgestone also announced its title status arrangements for four E-Prixs in the 2026/27 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship season at Mexico City, Berlin, Shanghia and Tokyo.
What will new rubber mean for drivers?
Drivers are set to have a very different experience with the Bridgestone rubber than they did for the last four years with the Hankook products they drove across Gen4.
Hankook were given an initial spec, which saw those tyres be overly hard for the needs of the Gen3 car, making it almost impossible for drivers to deploy the extra 50kW of power under attack mode.
That led to the implementation of All-Wheel-Drive for certain portions of the races in Gen3Evo, including using it during the attack mode phases of races. This, in conjunction with a modified Hankook spec of tyre, helped drivers gain the necessary traction to enable overtaking on the higher power.
For Gen4 the long development cycle and attention to detail on the ratio of power and grip has been more advanced through simulation and track testing. Speaking to Formula E Notebook earlier this year, official Gen4 test driver James Rossiter said that he felt the Gen4 would be a much more raceable prospect than Gen3 and Gen3Evo.
When asked if the power at the drivers disposal might compromise the tyre life significantly, Rossiter was unequivocal that the combination of the 600kW and the Bridgestone rubber would be a good balance.
“No, you’re good for an absolute full tilt lap,” he said.
“No problem on that side. It’s something that we really made sure in the development phase with Bridgestone.
“You didn’t have that ‘golden lap’ effect. To make sure that you have multiple opportunities, let’s say, to get the peak performance out of yourself and out of your package, we really made sure that there is that consistent ability for drivers to get out of it.
“Let’s say in a group session for quali, I would expect the drivers to be able to get three peak laps over the course of a group session. That’s really a key thing here to make sure that we are putting ourselves in the best light possible.”
Rossiter also stated that there would be a noticeable change in how drivers got the best out of Formula E cars now and how they race together, saying that “we’re going to have to see a bit of an evolution of the driving style, I think, in the races.
“Certainly, I’d like to think that with the increase in speed, we’re going to see a bit more respect from the drivers.
“That respect is going to become one of two ways. Either they’re going to have a conversation between all of them when they’ve all driven the car on the circuit together, or something will happen and then they’ll all have a conversation about it.”
