Bridgestone Americas announced that Firestone Racing will integrate its ENLITEN™ Technology to the brand’s Firehawk race tires for the 2026 in the IndyCar Series and Indy NXT, beginning with this weekend’s Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
The tire is the next chapter of the brand’s ability to “demonstrate the power of the sustainability-focused suite of technologies,” according to the press release.
This season will see Firestone Race Tire Engineering (RTE) design, develop, and deliver an estimated 37,000 Firehawk ENLITEN Technology race tires. More than 32,000 race tires for the IndyCar Series make up that total, with 60 different specifications to meet the diverse demands of oval, road, and street course configurations on the 18-race schedule. The tire allotment also includes 5,000 tires across 18 different specifications to support the next generation of drivers competing in Indy NXT.
The new ENLITEN Technology is designed to deliver customized performance while promoting a focus on enhanced sustainability across the Bridgestone and Firestone tire portfolios, which includes consumer products. Firestone Firehawk primary and alternate race tires will incorporate key ENLITEN Technology Components1 , including:
• Renewable soybean oil: Replaces petroleum-based oils traditionally used in tire compounds
• Recycled steel: Used for the bead wire that anchors a race tire to a wheel
• Recycled carbon black: Reinforcement material recovered from end-of-life tires
Use of these materials helps improve resource efficiency and increased material circularity while meeting the rigorous performance demands of North America’s premier open-wheel racing Series.
“Firestone Racing serves as a mobile lab to test and prove new technologies under the most extreme conditions,” said Lisa Boggs, Director, Bridgestone Americas Motorsports. “The integration of ENLITEN Technology is the next step in our commitment to no compromises, and sustainably focused technology through the use of cutting-edge materials.”
The previous three seasons saw Firestone’s sustainability efforts successfully prove the use of guayule-derived natural rubber in the sidewalls of alternate race tires on street circuits. Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 race tires also incorporated materials derived from hard-to-recycle plastics (2023) and palm oil waste residue (2024-25).
The 2026 Firehawk Indy 500 race tire will once again feature two ISCC PLUS- certified monomers – butadiene and bio-styrene, produced from waste residue of palm oil processing – along with recycled steel bead wire2 .
Efforts are also ongoing to advance end-of-life recycling initiatives for race tires, moving from energy generation to material circularity. Nearly 100% of the tires used in IndyCar and Indy NXT are recycled into new uses beyond the racetrack – including playground and sports surfaces, flooring and other rubber products.
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
– The Motorsport.com Team
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: motorsport.com
