At the beginning of the season all teams were given the same tires, the same way they were given specs for the width of their rear wing or the height of the nose or the displacement of their engines. Some teams did their homework and figured out how to successfully to deal with those challenges, some have not.
Lotus, Ferrari, Force India are the teams who worked it out, Red Bull, Mercedes and Mclaren, not so well yet those teams, especially Red Bull have been loudly whining in public about Pirelli and four stops being too many. Never mind that in 2011 when Vettel won, he did so on a four stopper with lap times very similar to Alonso this year ( Check out stats on that bottomless well of stats that is F1fanatic.co.uk Vettel 2011, Alonso 2013 ).
You did not hear Red Bull complain then like they did this week. Pirelli have decided to give in to pressure today, understandable as their public image is getting damaged and their F1 renewal not being confirmed publicly yet.
Is it fair, to change the playing field halfway through the game or does it smell of desperation from teams who could not figure it out?
Are you really happy with the show?
ReplyDeleteYes.
DeleteStop the whining, drive a 4 stop strategy, and go race! No, I don't think this is fair especially if it makes 1 team more dominant than another. Why can't F1 figure out how to make the racing even like all the other racing series do?
ReplyDeleteApparantly they are going back to the 2012 construction, so a kevlar belt intstead of the steel one seen on the delaminated tyres.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.jamesallenonf1.com/2013/05/what-pirellis-mid-season-changes-will-mean/
This seems reasonable. They had 2 tire failures last race. Pirelli has to fix the tire failures... if this means some teams lose out well that is luck of the draw. Can't have a tire delaminating... might kill someone.
DeleteIf Red Bull win a race with 3 stops or more from here on out they're hypocrites.
ReplyDeleteRed Bull just picked the right moment to whine really loud. They'd rather not have to do what Alonso did Sunday...
ReplyDeleteFAIR IS FAIR! If Pirelli deliberately makes tires to fade away quickly, then if the tires fade too quickly, driver safety could become an issue. This is really the only option Pirelli did have. Its not good marketing to have the quality of your tires questioned/criticized in the global motorsport press. Way to put the heat on Red Bull and Mercedes.
ReplyDeleteThe tire situation has gotten a bit ridiculous, but it's unfair to change the game in the middle of the season. So what's going to happen now? Are we going to see Vettel cruise to victory uncontested like we have in the past? If that's the outcome then people might regret their bitching.
ReplyDeletespain 2011 and 2013 clearly show, all pirellis changes in thes years is in favor of ferrari 100%
ReplyDeleteShame that they cannot find a balance and that it could change the direction of the season. I think they need to change it now but obviously something in the offseason was lacking in the way of true testing. I agree that they need to consider driver safety if the tires are disintegrating.
ReplyDeleteI imagine if the tire changes drastically throw the balance of the season they'll be forced to change it back, much like the blown diffuser fiasco a couple of years ago. I seriously would hate to see this throw a wrench in Alonso / Kimi's year. Both of them deserve to be where they are.
ReplyDeleteDC has some interesting comments on this issue:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/22512693
http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1rk9t7e
ReplyDeleteAm I the only one doubting every team agreed willingly?
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DeleteI'd much rather see them go back to one set of tires that lasts the entire race and let the cars go at it like they used to. This crap show of the last few seasons has been awful. Look at what was said about the USGP last year when they brought their harder more durable tires and everyone applauded the racing. I believe even this blog as well. They took the tire equation out of it and let the cars race and it was a great show. But now the teams are whining? It's clear to everyone the formula is broken. Erase the board and start over. I'd hate to be Paul Hembry right now.
ReplyDelete