McLaren drivers Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton term tyres key to success at Turkish GP – Formula 1
McLaren drivers Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton have said that the degradation of the Pirelli tyres is going to play a major role at the upcoming Turkish Grand Prix that will take place on May 8, 2011 in Istanbul.
Since the Istanbul International Circuit is a high-speed track, it is expected that the tyres are going to degrade even faster and the result of the race is going to largely depend on each team’s respective race strategy.
The 2011 Formula 1 season introduced a new tyre supplying company to the sport and since the Bridgestones of 2010 proved to be a failure in terms of strategy, the International Automobile Federation (FIA) asked Pirelli to come up with tyres which degrade
faster in order to increase the difficulty level of the sport.
“After the race in China, I think there'll once again be a lot of focus on tyre durability and drop-off next weekend. Looking at the track configuration, our simulations suggest that Turkey will be a critical test for the tyres - particularly the front-right,
which will be placed under considerable load through turn eight,” said Button.
On the other hand, Hamilton agreed with his teammate as he also believes that the tyres will be pushed to the very limit at turn 8 but added that the Kinetic Energy Recovery System is also going to play a vital role at the upcoming race.
“For this race, I think we'll be seeing drivers working quite hard to look after their tyres throughout the race, particularly in turn eight, which is fast and bumpy; it's one of the most demanding corners for tyres anywhere on the calendar,” said Hamilton.
Each team has been opting for around 2-3 pit stops at each race with the exception of Sergio Perez’s berserk 1 pit stop run during the season opening race of the 2011 Formula 1 season in Australia.
Nevertheless, Lewis and Jenson believe that the teams will have to work on their respective strategies keeping in mind the degradation of the Pirelli tyres.
Tags: