Pirelli provide longer-lasting tyres for Spanish Grand Prix

Felipe Massa at the Bahrain Grand Prix (GETTY IMAGES)

Pirelli will be providing Formula One teams with an extra set of tyres for practice sessions at this weekend's Spanish Grand Prix.

The idea is to ensure leading drivers run for the entire session rather than waiting for others to clean the track and make it more suitable for effective running.

Pirelli said the tyres would be made of a special hard compound, made to last much longer and different to the regular hards used during the rest of the weekend.