Thursday 4 July 2013

F1 2013: Pirelli passes the buck after tyre fiasco

ITALIAN tyre manufacturer Pirelli has blamed the Formula One teams for misusing its tyres after the British Grand Prix at Silverstone was marred by a series of dangerous high-speed blow-outs.

The Milanese firm released a statement following the race which claimed that this year's tyre "does not compromise driver safety in any way if used in the correct manner".

Pirelli's argument is simply that the teams have not been using the tyres properly - for example, by mounting the rears on the wrong way around, running low pressures, and using extreme cambers.

The sole supplier also blamed the punctures on the "high kerbs" at the Northamptonshire track even though it has hosted a British Grand Prix in every year since 1987.

Ultimately, Mercedes' German driver Nico Rosberg was triumphant for his second win in the last three races, the other being in the rather more luxurious surroundings of Monte Carlo five weeks previously.

But this victory came only after his team-mate, leading Briton Lewis Hamilton, was one of the six to suffer problems with the wheels below him.

For the record, the five others were Ferrari pair Fernando Alonso (on lap nine) and Felipe Massa (lap 10), as well as Jean-Eric Vergne (lap 15), Esteban Gutierrez (lap 29) and Sergio Perez (lap 47).

However, it was pole-sitter Hamilton who led a chorus of severe concern after he was denied only a second home Grand Prix win.

The 2008 champion said afterwards: "After my incident, I was definitely nervous for the rest of the race that the tyres might go again.

"Safety is the biggest issue. It's just unacceptable really. It's only when someone gets hurt that someone will do something about it.

"It's a waste of time talking to the FIA [Formula 1's governing body] and if they don't do anything that says a lot about them."

But support for immediate action was forthcoming across the paddock with a threat from the drivers to boycott this weekend's German Grand Prix.

Former McLaren driver-turned-BBC pundit David Coulthard added: "There are any number of issues which can prevent a Formula One car finishing a race - engine failures, gearbox failures, hydraulics, you name it. They are annoying and frustrating.

"But there are a few issues that are more serious that that. And tyre failures - like brakes failures - are right up there as being as bad as it can get. It is a really big worry and something urgently needs to be done about it.

"If I was still a driver, I would be very anxious about racing on those tyres again."

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has even suggested Alonso is lucky to be alive after he narrowly missed being hit by debris from the exploding rear tyre of McLaren’s Perez which exploded.

It was a truly ridiculous situation - and particularly dangerous given that the tyres were being torn to shreds at some of the fastest parts of the track.

Thankfully, far from simply just blaming the teams and the Silverstone kerbs, Pirelli has come up with both a short-term fix and a longer-term solution to the problem.

For a start, at the Nurburgring, the supplier has replaced the internal steel belt on its rear tyres with the synthetic strengthening material, Kevlar.

Then, with three weeks until the following race in Hungary, a revised tyre - to be used at the Young Drivers Test at Silverstone - will be based upon last year's design.

In return, Pirelli has demanded some control over the way the teams are allowed to use the tyres - but such a move is unlikely to come quickly as it would require a regulatory change.

After all, the teams were not actually breaking any rules - and who can blame them for seeking out every possible advantage in a sport as competitive as F1?

But, despite four different winners from the opening eight races, the Drivers' Championship has a familiar face at the top.

Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel remains on target for a fourth successive world title, despite retiring from the lead at Silverstone with gearbox failure only 11 laps from the finish.

If, for once, Vettel's luck had not deserted him, the German's advantage at the top of the standings would have been stretched to 49 points - almost two clear race wins.

Instead, his arch-rival Alonso - with whom Vettel fought a close championship battle last year - has closed the gap to 21 points after recovering to a third-place finish.

Leading the chasing pack is Lotus' Kimi Raikkonen who broke Michael Schumacher's record for the most consecutive points finishes with a fifth-place last weekend. The Finn, on 98 points, has now scored from the last 25 races.

The next three drivers behind him are separated by just seven points with Hamilton on 89, Mark Webber on 87 and Rosberg on 82 - before a larger gap to Massa in seventh on 57 and Force India's Scottish driver Paul di Resta on a creditable 36.

Whither the McLarens? Well, the Woking-based team has not won the Constructors' Championship since 1998, and this can only already be considered another complete write-off.

Having finished the 2012 season with the quickest car on the grid, the close season decision to alter the 2013 car has dramatically backfired.

A clearly unhappy Jenson Button is down in 10th place in the standings and new team-mate Perez has only managed 13th so far with a paltry 12 points from just three scoring finishes.

Overall in the Constructors' Championship, it means McLaren can only manage sixth, 87 points adrift of Lotus and even 22 points behind Force India, as the season moves towards its summer break.


CALENDAR
DateTelevision
Pole positionFastest lapWinner
17 MarchSkyAustralian Grand PrixVettelRaikkonenRaikkonen
24 MarchSkyMalaysian Grand PrixVettelPerezVettel
14 AprilBBC SkyChinese Grand PrixHamiltonVettelAlonso
21 AprilSkyBahrain Grand PrixRosbergVettelVettel
12 MayBBC SkySpanish Grand PrixRosbergGutierrezAlonso
26 MaySkyMonaco Grand PrixRosbergVettelRosberg
9 JuneBBC SkyCanadian Grand PrixVettelWebberVettel
30 JuneBBC SkyBritish Grand PrixHamiltonWebberRosberg
7 JulySkyGerman Grand Prix


28 JulySkyHungarian Grand Prix


25 AugustBBC SkyBelgian Grand Prix


8 SeptemberBBC SkyItalian Grand Prix


22 SeptemberSkySingapore Grand Prix


6 OctoberSkyKorean Grand Prix


13 OctoberBBC SkyJapanese Grand Prix


27 OctoberBBC SkyIndian Grand Prix


3 NovemberSkyAbu Dhabi Grand Prix


17 NovemberSkyUnited States Grand Prix


24 NovemberBBC SkyBrazilian Grand Prix



STANDINGS
Drivers' Championship
PDriverTeamPoints
01Sebastian Vettel (Ger)Red Bull-Renault132 (3 wins)
02Fernando Alonso (Spa)Ferrari111 (2 wins)
03Kimi Raikkonen (Fin)Lotus-Renault98 (1 win)
04Lewis Hamilton (Gbr)McLaren-Mercedes89
05Mark Webber (Aus)Red Bull-Renault87
06Nico Rosberg (Ger)Mercedes 82 (2 wins)
07Felipe Massa (Brz)Ferrari57
08Paul di Resta (Gbr)Force India-Mercedes36
09Romain Grosjean (Fra)Lotus-Renault26
10Jenson Button (Gbr)McLaren-Mercedes25
11Adrian Sutil (Ger)Force India-Mercedes23
12Jean-Eric Vergne (Fra)Toro Rosso-Ferrari13
13Sergio Perez (Mex)McLaren-Mercedes12
14Daniel Ricciardo (Aus)Toro-Rosso-Ferrari11
15Nico Hulkenberg (Ger)Sauber-Ferrari6
16Pastor Maldonado (Ven)Williams-Renault0
17Valtteri Bottas (Fin)*Williams-Renault0
18Esteban Gutierrez (Mex)*Sauber-Ferrari0
19Jules Bianchi (Fra)*Marussia-Cosworth0
20Charles Pic (Fra)Caterham-Renault0
21Max Chilton (Gbr)*Marussia-Cosworth0
22Giedo van der Garde (Ned)*Caterham-Renault0
*= Debut season in F1

Constructors' Championship
PTeamPoints
01Red Bull-Renault219 (3 wins)
02Mercedes171 (2 wins)
03Ferrari168 (2 wins)
04Lotus-Renault124 (1 win)
05Force India-Mercedes59
06McLaren-Mercedes37
07Toro Rosso-Ferrari24
08Sauber-Ferrari6
09Williams-Renault0
10Marussia-Cosworth0
11Caterham-Renault0

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