Formula 1 teams have been given a deadline of next Thursday to decide which tyre compounds to run at the 2016 season opening Australian Grand Prix.

The deadline has arisen following the announcement of new tyre regulations for next year which will see teams have the option to select compounds for each round in a bid to open up tyre strategy.

From the 13 sets allocated to each driver per race Pirelli will determine two sets for the race and one for qualifying, with the compounds for the remaining sets to be decided by the teams.

While teams are yet to run their new 2016 cars on the Pirelli rubber, a decision regarding tyre compounds for the Australian Grand Prix from March 17-20 is required by the end of next week.

The deadline was originally set for this Friday but has now been extended to December 17.

“Competitors must then inform the FIA, no less than eight weeks before the start of each event held in Europe and fourteen weeks before the start of each event held outside Europe, which specifications of dry-weather tyres they wish to use for each of their drivers at the event,” reads the FIA 2016 Formula 1 Sporting Regulations.

It has been reported that Pirelli will make the new-for-2016 super-soft available alongside the soft and medium compounds.