McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh defends the new Pirelli tyres
McLaren team boss, Martin Whitmarsh discouraged the drivers and teams for criticizing the new Pirelli tyres. He defended the Italian tyre manufacturers, proclaiming that Pirelli had done a wonderful job and had come up with exactly what FIA demanded.
While talking to the media earlier today, the Briton stated, "The wear can only be high because the grip when new is high. The drivers and teams should perhaps be more careful in their expressions. It's easy to step into the car and complain, but we want
more pit stops and we want cars that at various stages of the race are fighting with their tyres. That's part of the show."
Whitmarsh’s statement came in response to the complain of some leading drivers in the sport like Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and the reigning world champion, Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull.
Alonso said earlier this week that the new tyres degenerate too quickly, which will force the drivers to take far more pit-stops this season as compared to last one, which he was not very fond of. Similarly, Vettel expressed the same concerns about the new
tyres.
In an attempt to defend Pirelli, Whitmarsh leaped into the matter. He said earlier today, "Bridgestone were always a great partner, but from my position at FOTA I have heard several times in recent years’ pressure for tyres with more risk. But now we publicly
criticise the degradation of these tyres. The job of tyre supplier is a thankless one, as the higher wear is a feature that was requested to make the show better."
The teams have so far run three pre-season test sessions on the new rubber. Although many of the drivers have expressed a lot of excitement about these tyres, yet, some have shown concern for its quick degradation rate as compared to last year's Bridgestone.
Whitmarsh, who is also the Chairman of Formula One Teams Association [FOTA], believes that a year back many of the teams wanted this feature in the tyres, while the same were complaining now.
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