Formula One’s Sebastian Vettel joins Pirelli critic-panel
Owing to Bridgestone’s withdrawal from Formula One, Pirelli’s entrance into the multi-billion dollar motorsport has been met with a lot of criticism, with Sebastian Vettel recently joining the ranks of the Pirelli critic-list.
There has been increasing criticism over the durability of the new tyre - the rubber degrades too quickly, in layman terms. While the apparent rapid degradation is in line with the Italian manufacturer’s compliance with the FIA’s demand to do so, there has
been an obvious disagreement between the administration and race drivers. The aim of having such tyres is to spice up the sport. With increasing degradation, cars would be forced to make more pit stops. With that said, results in recent pre-season testing
have revealed that the new compound looses as much as 4 seconds a lap after merely 10 rounds.
Sebastian Vettel is all set to start the 2011 season after raving reviews from the racing community. The youngest driver in the sport’s history expressed his concerns over the new Pirellis. The young German commented,
“The problem is the tyres wear down too fast. They are only good for 16 or 17 laps, then they start to break up and are ruined, then the driver doesn’t have a chance. The feeling when driving is different and that is a pity for us.”
Vettel believes that the wearing out new Pirellis might cost a driver as much as 10 seconds per lap during a competitive Grand Prix.
However, Vettel hasn’t been the only driver to feel such way about the Bridgestone successors. Michael Schumacher felt, during pre-season testing, that the Pirellis lack grip and going around the circuit at full-speed felt ‘like driving on ice.’
Fernando Alonso, another noteworthy name echoes Vettel’s views as well. The Spaniard believes that not only do the tyres degrade too quickly, they lack grip as well.
With that in mind, a tyre that degrades quickly understandably grips the road better. While the Pirellis are said to wear out rather quickly, they should at least hold onto the surface better during the early laps and ideally heat up quicker as well – there
has been increasing complains that the tyre takes time heating up as well.
However, with the first competitive race of the 2011 season scheduled at the end of this month, it is still up for debate whether the Pirelli critic-panel’s criticism is objective or merely pleas of a group of drivers, who have gotten used to the Bridgestone-life
and are perhaps, a little rigid to welcome the change. Only time will tell.
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