FIA finally cracking down on tire pressure funny business.

With the announcement that pressures will be measured prior to installation, the FIA is finally cracking down on tricks teams had been using to get around the Pirelli determined minimum inflation values.

A little background: Pirelli determined tire failures were due to teams running low pressures to get a grip advantage.   Low pressure caused the sidewalls to fail.

Lower pressure increases the contact patch of the tires and improves traction,  each psi taken out is worth 1/10th of a second on an average lap so clearly it is in a team's best interest to try and get pressures as low as possible.    The FIA has been measuring pressures on the starting grid so how to get around that?

Temperature

Hub heating fan on a Mercedes  (Auto Motor Sport)

Hub "blanket"

Certain teams, Mercedes especially but also Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Force India, have figured out a "cheat" by playing with and controlling temperature of the whole wheel.   Wheel hubs were pre-heated and wheels designed to transfer this heat so as to raise the temperature of the gas inside the tire enough to expand it to the Pirelli prescribed pressure.
Once the car is moving, the hub cools in the airflow and heat from the brake disks is carefully ducted away from the wheel rim effectively cooling the tire and lowering the pressure.  

As the race progresses, "cheater" teams gain tremendously because they can maintain a lower pressure while other teams have to deal with a rise in pressures as the tire works.

As you might imagine,  only the very top teams can afford to devote resources to studying and simulating so many variables,  especially considering Pirelli pressures are different at each track Teams that can't play that game are at a huge disadvantage.

Auto Motor Sport writes:

"a source told us: 'If the starting pressure is 21 PSI and you put the wheel on a hot hub, it can quickly once rise to 22 PSI, until he starts again easy to fall off. In the last 5 minutes the tire is most vulnerable to pressure loss. So you have to do everything so that the temperature in these 5 minutes, does not drop too much. Should the pressure rise too high at measuring time, you can drain it to the correct start value.

All the heat (up to 200 degrees C) you have stored in the brake caliper, in the discs and the wheel hub, will disappear immediately when driving. The temperature quickly drops by half and you lose about one PSI. The pressure levels off depending on cooling of the brakes and rims to where you want it.'"

locating studs are also used s heat sinks (AutoMotorSport)

In any case, from now on pressures will be measured before the tire is on the car, the idea being to put a stop to this "arms race" of special heat transferring wheels and temperature controllers.  
Mindful teams will still try to game the system, Pirelli declared very high pressures for this week end compared to the previous year.

As a carrot, Pirelli promised that, if pressures are seen to not increase too drastically while the car is on track (meaning the teams are not trying to be too clever) they will bring future values more in line with what teams would ideally like to have.

This video explaining the 2016 Formula 1 tire regulations will make your head spin.

Why do Formula One teams need to employ armies of strategists and simulation engineers?  A few minutes into this clip and you might be asking yourself why it is that the brightest minds in motorsport have to chase after this kind of problem in the first place.

As you watch,  keep in mind teams will have picked compounds for the Australian GP in the middle of December, 2 months before the 2016 cars will have even rolled on their first test session.

In theory this will allow a greater "spread" in tire compounds to make more teams happy.  Over the past few seasons, Ferrari and Force India were hoping to softer tires while Red Bull and Mercedes like the harder compounds.Pirelli has tended to play it safe favoring the latter.

What this will mean in practice, remains to be seen.   For sure Steve Matchett will have his hand full explaining it to American audiences.

Oh brother, F1 gets it's own Deflate-gate.

Lewis Hamilton had the usual rocketship at Monza, upgraded engine and all.
Rosberg had a different car and is showed, his pace was nowhere near and eventually exploded a couple of laps from the end.

But the talk is of the pending penalty to Mercedes over tire pressures.

You can argue this until you turn blue but it should be cut and dry:  If a car was not operated within the technical regulations then it's not legal and it should be excluded.

If you argue .3 PSI makes no difference then you have to argue 2mm on a wing or .5 psi more fuel flow does not "really" make a difference.

It seems a black and white issue, at least when it comes to the starting set of option tires it really should have been resolved before the podium ceremony.

We don't know if the second set tires were within pressure specs but for sure Lewis made his tires last the longest in the first stint.   Lower pressures make tires last longer,  Lewis said as much himself after the race.  

Unfortunately the talk will be of plots and stupid rules and Pirelli being "terrible"

Did .3 psi make the difference?  Possibly not but there is no point to a rulebook if you make exceptions.

Spa was a dirty, dirty track says Pirelli

Pirelli released results of its investigation of the catastrophic tire failures on Rosberg and Vettel's cars, two weeks ago in Belgium.

Pirelli blamed the failures on debris and to a lesser extent, extended use on a very demanding circuit.

"The external factors are demonstrated by a total of 63 cuts found in the tread of the Formula One tyres used over the course of the Spa weekend, following numerous incidents that took place during the support races before the Formula One grand prix. 

In the previous 15 events (10 races and five test sessions) an average of only 1.2 cuts per event were noted. All this indicates an anomalous amount of detritus on the track in Spa, with a consequent increased risk of encountering a foreign object.

If even a small piece of debris – made of carbon or any other particularly sharp material – penetrates and cuts the various structural parts of a tyre (which is obviously subject to high-speed use, and more susceptible if used for a prolonged period) without penetrating the actual structure, this can cause a failure that is different to that found in the event of a normal puncture, which is characterised by a loss of tyre pressure. And the former was the type of event seen on Sebastian Vettel’s tyre at Spa.

As for Nico Rosberg, in whose case the tyre usage was less, the tyre held up – as the footage clearly shows – and the failure was not instantaneous. For four corners previously, an element of the internal structure of the tyre was visible, coming out of the tread pattern. This highlighted the existence of the damage and the consequent start of the tyre’s attrition.

Throughout the Spa weekend (including practice, qualifying and the race) cuts caused by debris were found on the tyres of other drivers, which damaged the construction but did not cause any failures."

Pirelli concluded by suggesting the FIA undertake a study on proper track cleaning procedures.

The full text of Pirelli's statement can be found HERE

Formula 1 "Code Brown" moment

a blowout!

Pirelli will have to send Nico new undies for Christmas!   Mercedes was not amused.

Pirelli later explained with an "oops, our bad":

"PIRELLI: MERCEDES FITTED WITH PROTOTYPE TYRES WHICH WILL NOT BE PROPOSED AGAIN.  2014 DEVELOPMENT GOING ACCORDING TO PLAN

Milan, 19 December 2013 – The tyre tests in Barhain regarded a number of prototypes, which were completely innovative in terms of structure and compounds, with the aim of developing the most suitable solutions for the next season.

This morning Nico Rosberg’s Mercedes was fitted with one of these prototypes, a tyre which had only been tested in the laboratory and which will not be proposed again.

Thus, the safety of the tyres which will be supplied for the next Championship is not in question.

The accident which happened to Rosberg’s car is being investigated and the findings will be communicated to the FIA and the teams."

More extra-curricular engine testing: Renault uses a World Series car.

Photo Nicolas Garcia/Flikr

There are media reports suggesting Renault has recently done testing of their 2014 "Turbo Energy F1" power unit at Paul Ricard using a World Series by Renault chassis.

If it true, which it probably is not, it does not mean any rules were broken as FIA sporting Regulations strictly limit testing but  only refer to cars, not powerplants.

"Track testing shall be considered any track running time not part of an Event undertaken by a competitor entered in the Championship, using cars which conform substantially with the current Formula One Technical Regulations in addition to those from the previous or subsequent year."

A World Series by Renault car is quite a bit closer to an F1 car in relevance than a modified supercar but Renault as an engine supplier is not bound by the sporting regulations.

Speaking of testing, the FIA is set to allow top teams to participate in a 2014 tire test using 2013 cars. Only Red Bull, Mercedes, Ferrari and Lotus were invited with the latter having to decline the invitation for lack of funds. Yet another crazy situation for F1.

Pirelli Blames User Error

Pirelli Motorsport issues findings on the Silvestone tire failures and puts the blame mostly on improper use of their product and lack of relevant data.

While it's easy for teams, along with many pundits and fans, to blame Pirelli, we had been cautious  with the thought there had to be contributing factors to such an extreme technical issue.
Indeed, according to Pirelli's investigation, Silverstone presented a "perfect storm" of circumstances that resulted in the five catastrophic failures of its tires over the course of the week end.

Teams looking for an edge have pushed the tires, using  them in ways beyond their design parameters, parameters in turn not clearly understood by Pirelli themselves because of lack of testing with a current car.
 
Pirelli's fault is to have been perhaps too eager to please and avoid confrontation with the teams,  what they got back has been a PR nightmare which they are now aggressively addressing.


Below is the full text of their finding,  Emphasis was added for crucial points.

After exhaustive analysis of the tyres used at Silverstone, Pirelli has concluded that the causes of the failures were principally down to a combination of the following factors:

1) Rear tyres that were mounted the wrong way round: in other words, the right hand tyre being placed where the left hand one should be and vice versa, on the cars that suffered failures. The tyres supplied this year have an asymmetric structure, which means that they are not designed to be interchangeable. The sidewalls are designed in such a way to deal with specific loads on the internal and external sides of the tyre. So swapping the tyres round has an effect on how they work in certain conditions. In particular, the external part is designed to cope with the very high loads that are generated while cornering at a circuit as demanding as Silverstone, with its rapid left-hand bends and some kerbs that are particularly aggressive.

2) The use of tyre pressures that were excessively low or in any case lower than those indicated by Pirelli. Under-inflating the tyres means that the tyre is subjected to more stressful working conditions.

3) The use of extreme camber angles.

4) Kerbing that was particularly aggressive on fast corners, such as that on turn four at Silverstone, which was the scene of most of the failures. Consequently it was the left-rear tyres that were affected.

The only problems that had come to light before Silverstone were to do with delamination, which was a completely different phenomenon. To stop these delaminations Pirelli found a solution by suggesting that the teams use the tyres that were tried out in Canada from Silverstone onwards. When this proposal was not accepted, Pirelli found another solution through laboratory testing, with a different bonding process to attach the tread to the carcass. So the problem of delamination has nothing at all to do with what was seen in Great Britain.

Following the conclusions of this analysis, Pirelli would like to underline that:

1) Mounting the tyres the wrong way round is a practice that was nonetheless underestimated by everybody: above all Pirelli, which did not forbid this.

2) In the same way, under-inflation of the tyres and extreme camber settings, over which Pirelli has no control, are choices that can be dangerous under certain circumstances. Because of this, Pirelli has asked the FIA for these parameters will be a topic of accurate and future examinations. Pirelli has also asked for compliance with these rules to be checked by a dedicated delegate.

3) Pirelli would also like to underline that the 2013 tyre range does not compromise driver safety in any way if used in the correct manner, and that it meets all the safety standards requested by the FIA.

The logical conclusion is that it is essential for tyres with the performance and technical sophistication of the 2013 range to be regulated and carefully controlled by Pirelli itself. In order to ensure the optimal functioning of the tyres, the Italian firm would need real-time data from the teams regarding fundamental parameters such as pressure, temperature and camber angles. While waiting for new regulations that would permit Pirelli access to this data, vital for the development and management of these state-of-the-art tyres, the following measures are proposed for the forthcoming grands prix, in agreement with the FIA, FOM, the teams and the drivers:

1) The use of the evolution of the current tyre that was tested in Canada (and proved to be completely reliable) for the German Grand Prix this weekend. This represents the best match for the technical characteristics of the Nurburgring circuit. In particular, the rear tyres that will be used at the German Grand Prix, which takes place on July 7, have a Kevlar construction that replaces the current steel structure and the re-introduction of the 2012 belt, to ensure maximum stability and roadholding. Given that these tyres are asymmetric as well, it will be strictly forbidden to swap them round. The front tyres, by contrast, will remain unaltered.

2) From the Hungarian Grand Prix onwards, the introduction of a new range of tyres. The new tyres will have a symmetrical structure, designed to guarantee maximum safety even without access to tyre data – which however is essential for the optimal function of the more sophisticated 2013 tyres. The tyres that will be used for the Hungarian Grand Prix onwards will combine the characteristics of the 2012 tyres with the performance of the 2013 compounds. Essentially, the new tyres will have a structure, construction and belt identical to that of 2012, which ensured maximum performance and safety. The compounds will be the same as those used throughout 2013, which guaranteed faster lap times and a wider working range. This new specification, as agreed with the FIA, will be tested on-track together with the teams and their 2013 cars at Silverstone from 17-19 July in a session with the race drivers during the young driver test. These tests will contribute to the definitive development of the new range of tyres, giving teams the opportunity to carry out the appropriate set-up work on their cars.

Paul Hembery, Pirelli’s motorsport director, said: “What happened at Silverstone was completely unexpected and it was the first time that anything like this has ever occurred in more than a century of Pirelli in motorsport. These incidents, which have upset us greatly, have stressed the urgency of the changes that we already suggested – which will be introduced during for free practice in Germany on Friday. We would like to acknowledge the willingness of the FIA, FOM teams, and drivers to act quickly to find an immediate solution to the problem. In particular, the adoption of winter tests, arranged with the FIA, that are more suitable for tyre development and the possibility of carrying out in-season testing will contribute to the realisation of tyres with increasingly improved standards of safety and performance. I’d like to re-emphasise the fact that the 2013 range of tyres, used in the correct way, is completely safe. What happened at Silverstone though has led us to ask for full access to real time tyre data to ensure the correct usage and development of tyres that have the sophistication we were asked to provide and extremely high performance that has lowered lap times by more than two seconds on average. While we wait for a change in the rules, we will introduce tyres that are easier to manage.”

Everything You Need To Know About the 2013 British GP

Well,  on the plus side,  exploding tires did make for an exciting race but I would not want to be in Paul Hembery's shoes today even if that fault lies solely with Pirelli remans to be seen.

Gary Anderson eloquently explains for BBC.

Mercedes Receives A Slap On The Wrist: Shocker....

As we outlined in this article, it comes as a surprise to exactly no one Mercedes only received a reprimand from the FIA International Tribunal in the "testgate" matter.  

Mercedes was in fact allowed to suggest it's own punishment, banishment from "Young Driver Test days" even  while the FIA determined Brawn's team had indeed gained an advantage running the test but it was unintentional....   What?

The full decision HERE

OK,  carry on.

Testgate: No New Pirelli Tires In Canada

Illustration: Giorgio Piola

A first consequence of the Mercedes-Pirelli testing debacle is Pirelli's decision to delay the introduction of its new tires, originally slated for the Canadian GP.

The new tire's construction combines aspects of the older 2012 version with current, or similar, rubber.  This was very much wanted by Red Bull who have had some trouble adjusting to this year's Pirellis.
The 2013 spec tires were built with a steel belt while 2012 tires features a Kevlar belt.  Ironically, while the change in spec is being "justified" on the grounds of safety,  the steel belt ensures the tire will not fully deflate allowing drivers a measure of control in case of de-lamitation.

Pirelli have announced it will provide each team with two sets of the new construction tires during practice in Canada so all teams can have a chance to get acquainted with them ahead of a new introduction at the British GP June 30th.  

This as Lotus, Force India and Marussia have joined Red Bull and Ferrari in their protest over the testing done by Mercedes after the Spanish GP.  The FIA's International Tribunal could take as long as a month and a half to rule on any penalties it might inflict on Mercedes-AMG.

Testgate: Keeping The Customer Happy

Photo: DigitalReflections/Flickr

Forgive us for being cynical but we've been following F1 for too long not to be.   Mercedes had been literally melting tires from the first race of the season much to the continued embarrassment of higher ups who have seen the Silver Arrows miss their targets since 2010 despite high profile engagements of Michael Schumacher and now Lewis Hamilton.  

Solution number one was to blame Pirelli and, after much praise given to the Italian manufacturer for producing a tire which added spice to racing, you saw a very coordinated campaign by the press to discredit the very thing they praised weeks earlier.  Would it be evil to point out where those same journalists get their credential and access from?  

As for Pirelli, they are facing a PR disaster if forced to  leave the sport with the impression they could not make a "good tire",  it's no surprise they jumped at the chance to help themselves and a key team, instrumental in renewal of their F1 contract not to mention a big production car tire customer.

Mercedes, aside from the AMG Petronas F1 team, produces engines for Mclaren  and Force India,   Williams will get MB power next year.  That's four out of eleven teams next year.

You may have noticed the Safety and Medical cars.  A fair number of trucks pulling paddock infrastructure have a three pointed star on the front of the cabs.

Mercedes is the only mass market luxury car manufacturer involved in F1, if  they became unhappy and left the sport, it would not be good news for Formula One and its investors.   You don't think Hamilton landed at AMG by accident, do you?

So is it really a surprise the test happened at all?  AMG Petronas got three races worth of running and suddenly their rear suspensions are not eating tires anymore.   Mercedes is smiling.

What would be a surprise is if the FIA slap Mercedes with a truly significant penalty.  How much  tension is there between the Bernie Ecclestone/ FOM  and Jean Todt's FIA?

Who Has The Most To Gain From Pirelli Looking Bad?

Griping about tires continues in Monaco as pressure on Pirelli  increases.   

Vettel's relentless whining was in full glory on the Riviera, with the German accusing "someone" of not having done their homework.

Sebastian must know it was not Pirelli as much as Red Bull who had missed the boat but, with Webber dutifully piling on, it's clear there is a campaign to pressure Pirelli into doing what it cannot legally (sports legally anyway) do without the consent of all teams:  change rubber compounds mid season.

There is a contract on the line,  Pirelli still have not been given the official go ahead as F1 tire supplier for 2014 onward and one has to wonder how all this plays into it.   Red Bull applying  pressure to ensure future tire specs better suit their design philosophy?

Yes, but I doubt that's all there is.  After all, up until just a few races ago,  the F1 of the past few years was being hailed as very exciting and a great show,  now all of a sudden it's declared a shit show that needs to be completely overhauled.  Strange right?   Power of the Red Bull Hospitality Buffet or maybe something more?

You might have caught a little item about how Bernie E "dissed" Jean Todt in Monaco by placing the FIA trailer in a supposedly less desirable spot in the paddock this year.  Trivial maybe but a hint at the growing tension between Bernie,  who many are foolishly waiting to drop dead retire any day and FIA boss Jean Todt who's role  nobody quite understands.  


It was Bernie's idea to convince Pirelli to produce not the best tire they could  produce but one that would present a challenge to engineers while preventing one team from dominating.   Todt on the other hand, being French might want to get a French company... say, Michelin, back in the game.  Koreans are at the door too,  looking for an opening, eager to spend big bucks .  There are plenty circling, waiting to  bite the Pirelli donut.

For Pirelli this is becoming a potential PR nightmare,  as Filippo Zanier said in our email discussion,  if  forced to leave the sport  public perception would be it was because they could not produce good enough tires .    Paul Hembery must not get much sleep these days, our guess is that when tires construction gets reconfigured in the next few weeks, "for safety reasons",  there will be a little special something for RBR in the compound.

The Horse Whisperer Is An Axis Reader?

Probably not but he sure has the same point of view you read and commented on here last week ...

From The Horse Whisperer on Ferrari.com

"These are difficult times for people with poor memories. Maybe it’s because of the huge amount of information available today that people are too quick to talk, forgetting things that happened pretty much in the recent past. Or maybe the brain cells that control memory only operate selectively, depending on the results achieved on track by their owners.

A classic example of this is the current saga regarding the number of pit stops. Voices have been raised to underline the fact that various teams, some of whom got to the podium and others who were quite a way off, made four pit stops in the recent Spanish Grand Prix, making the race hard to follow.

It’s a shame that these worthy souls kept quiet two years ago when, at the very same Catalunya Circuit and on the Istanbul track, five of the six drivers who got to those two podiums made exactly the same number of pit stops as did Alonso and Massa last Sunday in the Spanish Grand Prix.

In fact, there’s nothing new about winning a race making so many pit stops, even discounting those where it was down to changeable weather. One only has to look back to 2004, when Michael Schumacher won the French Grand Prix thanks to what was a three stop strategy, later changed to a four stopper. That was the key which allowed the multiple champion’s F2004 to get ahead of the then Renault driver, Fernando Alonso, who made three stops. And on that day and we remember it well, our strategy and the tyre supplier were showered with praise for allowing us to get the most out of the car.

Today however, it seems one must almost feel ashamed for choosing a strategy that, as always for that matter, is aimed at getting the most out of the package one has available. On top of that, if this choice emerges right from the Friday, because all the simulations are unanimous in selecting it, then why on earth should one feel embarrassed when compared to those who have gone for a different choice, only to regret it during the race itself."

High Wear Tires, Not Just Formula 1

While I agree with Lotus F1 principal Eric Boullier that it's "weird to change the length of a football pitch at half time to accommodate players who can't run as fast",  there are less explored  aspects of current tire performance trends that reach beyond F1 into feeder series and will have a potential effect on future racers.

Filippo Zanier has worked in motor sport as a reporter and as Series Coordinator and PR Manager for AutoGP World Series and for the Gulf 12 Hours at Yas Marina.   He has been a frequent commenter here and has recently started The Outside Pass.    We are very happy to have Filippo contribute to Axis of Oversteer.


GP3 Getting Tyred Too by Filippo Zanier

While the delamination issues suffered between Bahrain and Catalunya forced Pirelli to admit that there may be something wrong with their tyre construction, in Spain we assisted to another race weekend dominated by rubber.

Engineer-to-driver radio messages were a litany of tyre saving advices, whilst those from drivers to the pit walls where a string of tyre-related yelling.  Even Alonso’s win, despite an evident advantage in performance/wear balance, was in jeopardy before the last pit-stop due to a delamination hint that was spotted just in time by the Ferrari crew.

Neither fun nor exciting if you ask me, and getting worse one GP after the other, which is what should really worry both paddock and fans.
But what’s even more worrying is the effect that this new joint FIA/Pirelli approach to motor racing is having on the feeder championships, namely GP3.

Barcelona saw the debut of the new car, with improved aero and a 400 bhp V6 engine, a big step forward compared to last year’s turbo powerplant. The performance gain was sensible and in winter testing, with cold track temperatures, drivers were amazed. Anyway, May is considerably hotter and in Barcelona the attention quickly switched to worries concerning tyre wear.

The races, Saturday’s one in particular, proved that the issue was real: Arden’s rising star Daniil Kyvat dropped to P20 after running as high as 4th and his team mate Sainz Jr crossed the line in 15th. Art’s Facu Regalia posted a good sixth time in Quali, but in the race he had to retire with two laps to go after losing a large chunk of tread from his left front, the tyre which has to cope with a tremendous stress in Turn 9, the infamous Campsa corner (see the image opening the post).

Things went a bit better in Race 2, mainly because drivers were well aware of the problem and nursed their rubber to the line, but at the end of the weekend everybody agreed that the situation was far from ideal, and that pushing for more than a few laps would have ended in tyres falling to pieces.

So what’s happening? As F1 has turned racing into tyre management, its feeder championships are doing the same. GP2 went on that path two years ago and they’re holding the line, and now it’s GP3′s turn.
But is that the right thing to do? The average age of the GP3 field is 19 years old, and most drivers have F.Renault 2.0, F3 or the old spec GP3 as a background, so they are tackling their first season on high-powered machinery: is tyre management what they should really worry about?
GP3 already offers very little track time (45 mins. Practice, 30 mins. Quali, 2 Races of 30 mins. each) wouldn’t it be better if drivers could just be allowed to show their talent and outright speed, their consistency and focus, their ability to push from the lights to the flag? These young guns still have a lot to prove, forcing them to drive slower to preserve the tyres means diverting the attention from what should really matter at their age.

In the next few years, when they’ll graduate to GP2, they’ll have plenty of time to get frustrated because of tyres but for now, please, just let them race.

Whining Pays Off: Pirelli Will Change Tires To Suit RBR and Mercedes

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?

Reminder: F1 Is Back!

Qualifying for the Spanish GP is Saturday Morning at 8 AM ET on NBC SportsHD  

Back on European soil after a three week break,  you'll see cars with big updates,  new rumors, two DRS zones

....same old Pirellis though,  one completely fell apart on Paul Di Resta's Force India during Friday practice and drivers are having to hold back on long sweepers to save the tires for the tighter corners during qualifying.  This can't continue.

Formula 1 Getting Tired Already.

Tired as in the black Italian made rubber donuts which seemed to be be falling apart at an alarming rate in the Malaysian heat.    15 laps on the harder compound is the prediction for Sunday if the weather is dry, which at Sepang is always a possibility (40% chance of rain predicted).

Could potentially be a complicated week end for Pirelli's Paul Hembery who's saying everything is unfolding as planned.   But is it a good plan, this of having a good company make bad tires forcing drivers to become resource managers?  
The only thing we can say is that, whatever it is, at least it's the same for everyone,  just another technical challenge to deal with.

But this being F1, there are reports of muttering in the paddock about Lotus' unfair advantage given by  Pirelli using a 2010 Renault R30 as its development car.

FP2 Results:

Pos Driver                Team                    Time       Gap      Laps
 1. Kimi Raikkonen        Lotus-Renault           1m36.569             28
 2. Sebastian Vettel      Red Bull-Renault        1m36.588s  + 0.019s  27
 3. Felipe Massa          Ferrari                 1m36.661s  + 0.092s  33
 4. Fernando Alonso       Ferrari                 1m36.985s  + 0.416s  23
 5. Mark Webber           Red Bull-Renault        1m37.026s  + 0.457s  29
 6. Romain Grosjean       Lotus Renault           1m37.206s  + 0.637s  26
 7. Nico Rosberg          Mercedes                1m37.448s  + 0.879s  32
 8. Paul di Resta         Force India-Mercedes    1m37.571s  + 1.002s  30
 9. Lewis Hamilton        Mercedes                1m37.574s  + 1.005s  32
10. Adrian Sutil          Force India-Mercedes    1m37.788s  + 1.219s  10
11. Sergio Perez          McLaren-Mercedes        1m37.838s  + 1.269s  21
12. Jenson Button         McLaren-Mercedes        1m37.865s  + 1.296s  29
13. Nico Hulkenberg       Sauber-Ferrari          1m38.068s  + 1.499s  31
14. Esteban Gutierrez     Sauber-Ferrari          1m38.645s  + 2.076s  23
15. Jean-Eric Vergne      Toro Rosso-Ferrari      1m38.738s  + 2.169s  31
16. Pastor Maldonado      Williams-Renault        1m38.801s  + 2.232s  27
17. Daniel Ricciardo      Toro Rosso-Ferrari      1m38.904s  + 2.335s  31
18. Jules Bianchi         Marussia-Cosworth       1m39.508s  + 2.939s  30
19. Valtteri Bottas       Williams-Renault        1m39.660s  + 3.091s  28
20. Charles Pic           Caterham-Renault        1m40.757s  + 4.188s  29
21. Giedo van der Garde   Caterham-Renault        1m40.768s  + 4.199s  32
22. Max Chilton           Marussia-Cosworth       1m41.438s  + 4.869s  23

That's A Lot Of Tire Crud

Photos: Antarc/Flickr

Drivers weren't kidding when they complained about tire degradation in the recent tests.   I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels tire klag is the scourge of F1 racing, turning every track into a one car wide toboggan run.

No comment...

...needed!

Rally Car Vs Skier even more awesome in extended version!

In this longer version of the clip we showed you a while back we get much more of the climb up Monte Zoncolan in North East Italy with driver, six time Italian rally champion Paolo Andreucci and skier,  his navigator, Anna Andreussi.

On the way up, the studded Pirellis help the Peugeot 207 reach 160 km/h, but it's hitting that same 100 mph on the way down with the huge jumps I can't quite imagine, "Porca puttana" indeed!