Mark Webber, Nick Fry against Bernie Ecclestone’s idea of artificial rain – Formula 1 news
Red Bull driver Mark Webber and Mercedes chief Nick Fry have discarded the idea of FIA chief Bernie Ecclestone of artificial rain to make the Formula 1 sport more interesting.
They both have the same idea that this unnatural act will not cope up with the nature of Formula 1 and the drivers will be the first to suffer from it, not officials.
Mark Webber said about the idea, “No and no.” he further said that these are not the innovations that would make the game interesting, but rather it will put the drivers in more danger. He said that the Formula 1 legend like Jimmy Clark and Ayrton Senna,
who were masters of driving in wet conditions, would be turning in their graves if such an innovation is included in the game.
Nick Fry, chief of Mercedes team, said, “I think Bernie's putting forward some entertaining ideas but Formula 1 is about contending with the conditions that prevail at the time.”
He explained that all the talks of these kind of innovations, Ecclestone is talking about, including the movable rear wing and the return of KERS, is by the fact that some critics think that last season was boring and there was not enough overtaking so the
game need some changes.
Nick rejected the idea and said, “We have races in the evening and during the day and halfway between the two and I don't think anyone could say that last year was boring.”
On Wednesday, Pirelli director Paul Hembery said that Ecclestone idea will bring some charm to the game, especially on the desert circuits. It was originally his idea to have artificial rain showers to make Formula 1 more interesting. He cited the 2010 Abu
Dhabi GP’s example where Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was unable to overtake Renault’s rookie Vitaly Petrov.
His argument, about the wet race, had some reality in it, as Pirelli has officially done this kind of artificial rain test in Abu Dhabi earlier this year to simulate the wet conditions they were to face in Asia. He said that it can be controlled and the
drivers will not face visibility problem as there will be no clouds.
Ecclestone talked about the idea of artificial rain in his recent interview and said that it can be induced for 20 minutes or the last ten laps with an early warning of 2 minutes, so that no one would know what is ahead. He further said that no team should
be told before the game how many rain showers will be induced to keep things tense in the pits and in the car.
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