Pirelli's typical political reaction on last tyre blowouts not clear
Jun.17 - A well-known F1 tyre expert has slammed Pirelli's explanation for the Baku blowouts as a "typical political reaction".
While Max Verstappen and former Bridgestone tyre engineer Kees van der Grint suspected technical failures were the cause, Pirelli ultimately concluded that both the Dutch driver and Lance Stroll's teams had improperly used the tyres.
As a result, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Pirelli and the FIA will now impose new and stricter rules for checking tyre temperatures and pressures.
"In practice, once the pre-qualifying and pre-race pressures have been measured, the inflation valves will be protected by FIA seals which cannot be removed," the Italian sports newspaper reported.
The new checks will also involve verifying tyre blanket temperatures with thermal scanners, as well as cold tyre pressures after the race - with differences of 0.1 psi subject to penalties.
Aston Martin reacted to Pirelli's insinuation that the teams are to blame by echoing the earlier denial made by Red Bull.
"The team has always operated its tyres within the Pirelli-prescribed parameters and will continue to do so," the Lawrence Stroll-owned team said in a statement.
As for van der Grint, who worked with Michael Schumacher during the ultra-successful Ferrari-Bridgestone era, he expressed doubt at the outcome of Pirelli's investigation.
"When you read it you think 'What are they actually saying?'" he told the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf.
"They certainly aren't taking the blame and that's very typical. Red Bull said they did nothing wrong, so who is talking nonsense here?" the Dutchman added.
2009 world champion Jenson Button also chimed in, echoing van der Grint's suggestion that Pirelli's investigation essentially proved nothing.
"What was the reason for the failures then?" he said. "Aston and Red Bull stuck to the limits given, there were no cuts in the tyres from debris and no defects or failure from Pirelli.
"Voodoo magic then, I guess," Button added.
Van der Grint predicted that the latest episode will do nothing to improve relations between Formula 1's sole and official tyre supplier and the teams.
"It is clear that many teams no longer take Pirelli seriously," he said. "If they trusted each other, all these protocols wouldn't be necessary, would they?
"It's just another example of the lack of trust between Pirelli and the teams," the tyre engineer added.
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Bring back Goodyear or Michelin. Safety must come first. Pirelli is not being transparent nor finding root cause and owning the failures. How far we have come from teams boycotting F1at Indianapolis over unsafe tires. At least a tire war gives incentives to produce the best and options for teams. Two drivers could have been killed. The winner was denied victory. Not good for the sport to have a Mickey Mouse tire supplier.
Spot on. It would be great if another mfg. showed any real interest, or maybe the FIA would stop this silly one tire crap. Denny Hume had the best quote ever when asked about tires, "They're round and they're black". Ahh Denny, the Kimi of yesteryear.
What a surprize quoted off the BBCF1 page, but the last bit about "our tyres made me laugh"
Hamilton said: "In this particular instance, I don't think Pirelli are at fault."
But Verstappen, who suffered one of the tyre failures, said: "They have to look at themselves."
Pirelli concluded the conditions in which the tyres were being run were at fault.
The Dutchman added: "We didn't do anything wrong, so they cannot put the blame on us."
And then LH says ---"We didn't have a problem with our tyres. I think they have done a great job with the tyres this year, they are more robust than before."
Tyres working well are they lol
Italian tire, Italian press. Hmm, maybe Sir Lewis IS angling for a go at Ferrari.
No amount of angling would get Ferrari interested lol.
Hammy cant make his mind up , in one interview that i posted he says the tyres are great and today he says---
Reflecting on his day, Hamilton says things didn’t feel too different to how they did at the least two rounds, with him struggling with tyres.
“Not much different, to be honest,” he told Sky Sports.
“Even though the position is quite different to Monaco and Baku, [it’s] quite a struggle this weekend – probably for everyone.
“I don’t know if it’s the track surface, the temperature or these inflated tyres. They put the pressures up higher than ever before, one of the highest, so it’s difficult to say.
“We’re all sliding around and it’s a struggle out there for everyone.”