Formula One: Wearing out ‘new’ Pirelli’s
Bridgestone’s withdrawal from Formula One acted as a catalyst to bring Pirelli back to the Formula One business. While change is generally considered good, recent remarks from ‘key’ drivers have suggested otherwise; expressing concerns over the new rubber.
The first pre-season testing in Valencia brought about rather negative vibes regarding the new Pirelli tyre compound. While some drivers preferred to take the diplomatic approach to the question, there were some that had no qualms about bashing the Bridgestone
replacement.
Michael Schumacher maintained that he had a little trouble handling the car as the Pirelli’s lacked consistency with respect to varying compound options. Calling it ‘like driving on ice’, Schumi felt the car rather twitchy when the tyres weren’t up to race
temperature. However, the 7 time champion, notably known for making excuses since making his Formula 1 comeback, was quick to reiterate that the tyres were still in their testing stages and expected that the manufacturers would get it right before the start
of the competitive season.
Robert Kubica was another noteworthy name to criticize the Pirelli rubber. While Schumacher complained over the cold tyre’s lack of grip before getting to optimal temperature, Kubica questioned Pirelli’s durability. Despite posting the quickest lap time
on the final day of testing, the Polish driver wasn’t entirely satisfied with his tyre-wear.
He said, “Let's say they have quite big degradation so it will be very important to manage them better and maybe change a bit of the set-up in order to make them last longer and extract more performance from them."
In comes Fernando Alonso to the picture. The fastest man on track on Wednesday had similar notions; in a way, summarizing Schumacher and Kubica’s worries in a single statement. The Spaniard remarked that the tyres degraded rather quickly and lacked grip
at times.
The Pirelli director, Mr. Paul Hembery, offered some assurance with ‘logical reasoning' forming the basis of his response.
He said, "We have to remember that all tyres wear out, which is something some people seem to have forgotten in the last few days. Some teams here have had a new car, some last year's car. It is very early to draw conclusions.”
The director also reminded that conditions were a touch ‘too’ cold in Valencia to be able to draw out accurate assessments. Secondly, he offered that it was more important seeing the bigger picture than to base their work on a particular driver or team –
Brings back fond memories of Bridgestone considered as an ‘official’ Ferrari tyre, doesn’t it?
On a concluding note, given the limited number of tyres allowed per team, it is vital that Pirelli comes up with a more durable formula. The new regulations that allow the use of an adjustable rear wing to encourage overtaking would see cars constantly eating
up their tyres and it would be a shame seeing the drivers forced to take a conservative approach merely to end the race with what little is left of their treads.
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