> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://playbook.smedleygroup.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Pit Stop Strategies

> The predicted winner's top two pre-race tyre strategies, drawn in the Tyre Strategy format with the time gap between them.

## Overview

Pit Stop Strategies shows the two best pre-race strategies the engine found for the driver it expects to win: Option 1 (its top-ranked plan) and Option 2 (the runner-up). Each plan is drawn as a row of tyre stints in the same visual style as [Tyre Strategy](/software/internal/watchparty/widgets/tyre-strategy), so you can compare stop timing and compound order before the race starts. The view is fixed: it reads the pre-race snapshot and never follows the playhead.

> [!NOTE]
>
> This is a race-only widget: outside a race session it shows "Session is not a race." and computes nothing.

***

## What It Shows

![Pit Stop Strategies, the predicted winner's two pre-race options under the Top 2 Strategies title (Singapore 2026, lap 42)](https://mintcdn.com/smedley_group/mBbZR7MlEHu8vHdi/images/watchparty/pit-stop-strategies.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=mBbZR7MlEHu8vHdi\&q=85\&s=cbe9f4f4bef012f4c83608e799993ca8)

A title, then two rows at most, one per option, on a lap axis that runs from lap 1 to the end of the race. The title is the only text drawn outside the chart: there is no driver name or note.

| Element | Meaning |
| - | - |
| Title | "Top 2 Strategies", centred above the chart and scaled with the tile in the same way as the Tyre Deg & Life title, so it reads from a distance |
| Bar height | The rows take about 40 percent of the tile's height and sit centred in the space under the title, rather than filling the tile |
| Left label | The strategy's category: one letter per tyre set, joined by hyphens, with the starting set first. For example "S-M" is a soft start then a medium, and "M-H-M" is two stops |
| Row order | Option 1 (the engine's rank 1 strategy) on top, Option 2 (rank 2) below |
| Stint bars | Solid, full-colour blocks in the compound colour, one per set, spanning that stint's laps. There is no hatching, no predicted overlay and no compound picker |
| In-bar text | Each stint carries its lap range, "Lap 1-39" for example, in dark text on the compound colour. A bar too narrow to hold the text shows nothing rather than a clipped fragment |
| Right text | The option's total predicted race time minus Option 1's, to two decimal places with a leading sign, such as "+0.00s" or "+8.74s". Option 1 always reads "+0.00s" |
| Lap axis | Spans the race distance. It is never shorter than the snapshot's own scheduled distance |

There is no order toggle, because the two rows are fixed.

***

## Data Behind It

This widget has no insight metric of its own and carries no `model_id` of its own. It is a client-side derivation over the strategy engine's pre-race snapshot, so its registry entry names the same source the other strategy widgets read: `strategy_snapshot`.

* **Snapshot**: the lap-0 snapshot, the full solve of the race from the grid that is stored before green flag (see [Pre-Race and What-If Studies](/software/internal/watchparty/strategy/pre-race-and-study-mode)). Later laps' snapshots are ignored, so scrubbing or playing the session never changes the view.
* **Predicted winner**: `buildPreRaceStrategyOptions` in `src/screens/preRaceStrategyOptions.ts` picks the driver whose rank 1 strategy has the lowest reachable predicted time. A tie goes to the lower car number, and a strategy the engine marks unreachable is skipped.
* **Options**: that driver's rank 1 and rank 2 rows become Option 1 and Option 2. Each row's category letters (S, M, H, I, W) are decoded into stints, with the first letter as the starting set and the engine's stop laps as the boundaries.
* **Delta**: Option 2's predicted time minus Option 1's, formatted by `formatDelta` in `src/screens/PitStopStrategies.tsx`.
* **Chart**: the Tyre Strategy component, fed solid stint segments, a category label on the left, the delta as trailing text on the right and each stint's lap range drawn inside its bar. The lap range is an opt-in of this widget; the Tyre Strategy widget itself draws none.
* **Race total**: the axis uses the race's total laps from the `fuel_numbers` parameter row when it is known, and always spans at least the snapshot's scheduled distance.

***

## States

> **No pre-race snapshot**
>
> Shows "No pre-race strategy" when the session has no lap-0 snapshot. A snapshot for any later lap does not count.

> **No reachable strategy**
>
> Shows "No reachable pre-race strategy for any driver" when a lap-0 snapshot exists but no driver has a reachable rank 1 strategy, so there is no predicted winner to show.

> **Only one option**
>
> If the winner's rank 2 strategy is missing or unreachable, the widget draws a single row, Option 1, reading "+0.00s". It does not invent a second option.

> **Unknown tyre letter**
>
> A category letter the widget does not recognise draws a neutral stint rather than a guessed compound colour.

> **Live vs replay**
>
> Wire-identical. The widget reads the same snapshot whether the session is live or replayed and never branches on it.

> **Session-type gating**
>
> Race-only. Outside a race, the widget shows "Session is not a race."

***

## FAQ

> **Why does Option 2 show +0.00s?**
>
> The engine ranked two strategies with the same predicted time. This typically happens with mirror strategies, such as S-M and M-S, where the two stints swap compounds over the same race distance. The tie is expected and is not a defect.

> **Why is the winner not shown?**
>
> The widget deliberately draws no driver name; the only heading is the "Top 2 Strategies" title. The two rows always belong to the engine's predicted winner from the pre-race snapshot, so read the strategy page for the full field.

> **Why does a short stint have no lap text?**
>
> The "Lap X-Y" text hides itself on a bar narrower than it is, so a very short stint, or a small tile, draws the colour alone. Hover the bar: its tooltip still carries the laps.

> **Why does it not change as the race runs?**
>
> It is a fixed pre-race view. To see how the plan is moving lap by lap, use [Predicted Podium](/software/internal/watchparty/strategy/predicted-podium) and the [Strategy Table](/software/internal/watchparty/strategy/table), which follow the playhead.

> **Can I correct a compound by right-clicking a bar?**
>
> No. Unlike Tyre Strategy, these bars are a prediction, not recorded stints, so no compound picker is offered.

***

## Next Steps

> **[Tyre Strategy](/software/internal/watchparty/widgets/tyre-strategy)**
>
> The same visual, drawn from every driver's real stints.

> **[Pre-Race and What-If Studies](/software/internal/watchparty/strategy/pre-race-and-study-mode)**
>
> How the lap-0 snapshot this widget reads is built.

> **[Strategy Table](/software/internal/watchparty/strategy/table)**
>
> The ranked strategies for every driver as the race runs.

> **[Predicted Podium](/software/internal/watchparty/strategy/predicted-podium)**
>
> Who the engine expects to finish where.


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