From the minute the green light was activated signalling the
start of the first pre season test at Jerez, the word on everyone lips has been
‘tyres’. During this first test the new Pirelli
tyres degenerated rapidly leaving them in tatters, however the highly abrasive
nature of the track surface at Circuito de Jerez wasn’t able to indicate a true
reflection of their behaviour. When
reflecting on the opening test and looking forward to the second test in
Barcelona, Pirelli Motorsport Director Paul Hembury said,
“The limiting factor at the opening test in Jerez earlier
this month was the abrasiveness of the track, so hopefully conditions will be
more representative this time.”
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| Pirelli tyres available this season. Photo: F1fanatic |
However conditions this year at the Circuit de Catalunya
were not representative of those usually experienced in Barcelona. While ice on the track first thing in the
morning isn’t unheard of at this time of year, the temperature usually rises as
morning progresses. This year, the
temperature remained cool, leading to more intense graining caused by an
increased level of sliding being experienced on a cold track. This circuit is also renowned for posing a
challenge for tyres, as the formidable number of right hand corners results in
high degradation, particularly on the left front.
With tyre behaviour still causing a concern, complaints
about the new tyres flooded in courtesy of the drivers. Particularly creative in their descriptions
were Toro Rosso drivers. Jean Eric Vergne,
who thought the shredded tyres look like cauliflowers, and his team mate,
Daniel Ricciardo, who likened the marbles left on the track to rubber
bullets.
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| Marbles at Turn 16. Photo: Briony Dixon |
Prior to testing in Barcelona Paul Hembury said this seasons
tyres are,
“Generally softer and
faster than last year with deliberately increased degradation”
Have the tyres been made too soft? Based on unreliable data from both pre season
tests conducted so far, Sergio Perez was quoted in Speed Week,
“The cool
temperatures are making it worse; in Melbourne it will probably be better,
otherwise we will be doing seven or ten pitstops.”
No doubt the weather will be less inclement in Melbourne but
Pirelli are counteracting this with their nomination of the supersoft tyre to
accompany the medium. According to Pastor Maldonado, the supersoft tyre is not
only spongey and quickly degrading, but also slower than the soft
compound. In a media statement Pirelli
said,
” The full step in the compound choice should ensure a
performance gap between the cars that allows strategy to come into play.”
Couple this with a statement made by Racing Manager at
Pirelli, Mario Isola, when speaking to Spanish newspaper El Pais,
“All we’ve done is try to slightly increase the spectacle of
the racing, but we haven’t done anything dramatic.”
For those who believe that the spectacle of Formula One is centred
on pit stop strategy, making the right call on tyres at the optimum moment and
gaining positions while in the pits, then Pirelli’s election of the supersoft
compound will appear positive and exciting.
But what about those who hold the view that the spectacle lies in the
driving itself, in the different nuances the drivers have that enable them to undertake
manoeuvres that leave the spectator awe – struck.
Drivers bring contrasting styles to the track. Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso share a smooth
braking style, while Lewis Hamilton’s approach is to roar up to the corner
braking as late as possible; an approach
that served him well in 2012 as he was able to get heat into the tyres, leading
to a higher level of grip, something Jenson Button struggled with. Alonso was able to transform his gentle
approach into a style more reticent of Hamilton’s. While it is a mark of an exceptional driver
to be able to mould themselves to their machinery and the tyres, as Jim Clark
was able to do and as Fernando has proved he can, is there a danger of all
drivers adopting the same characteristics and style to their driving? Do we want to see every driver thundering up
to the corner, braking as hard and late as possible in order to get heat into
the tyres, or do we want a variety?
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| Alonso is able to adapt driving style to match the behaviour of the tyres. |
As Pirelli are the sole supplier, the situation regarding
the tyres is the same for each team.
Ultimately this means that the race will be won by the team who can
achieve peak performance out of them. In
a season that will close the performance between the teams on the grid due to
the static regulations, tyre strategy could be the only aspect to propel a team
into the realms of victory in 2013. An
achievement Pirelli would no doubt be proud of.
Paul Hembery expressed a wish to limit the cars aerodynamically,
“Our intention was to
offer greater mechanical grip, thus reducing the importance of
aerodynamics. This leads us to believe
that there will be less difference between the performance of the big and the
middle- sized teams.”
If true, this would be beneficial, as more features kept
consistent between all cars would move the spotlight increasingly on driver
skill and style, but with the tyre situation forcing drivers to become clones
of each other, only tyre strategy remains as the differentiating factor. When available tyre compounds are dictated
for each race, we could be led to wonder whether racing in Formula One has ever
been so contrived.
Perhaps the most negative impact stipulations about use of
tyres has made, was in 1982, when renewed regulations ordered that qualifying
would be completed on just two sets of tyres. Gilles Villeneuve made the point
that when on a last set of tyres and approaching traffic on a qualifying lap, a
move to overtake could prove precarious and unsafe. Shortly after expressing this view, the
French Canadian was killed during qualifying overtaking a car not on a flying
lap.
Would having multiple tyre suppliers solve the air of
manipulation that surrounds the tyre situation?
In 2001 Michelin returned to Formula One after a gap of seventeen years
to challenge Bridgestone, who had enjoyed two years as the sole supplier. This meant there were differences in the
tyres, therefore facilitating varying driving styles. Particular tyres would perform better at some
circuits than others, so if the track was a Bridgestone track, tyre advantage
meant then they were guaranteed to win. In
addition to this, some tyres were better in the rain or on damp tracks. Tracks with lower tyre advantage differences
would produce closer racing. Though not as
contrived or manipulated, it was perhaps more predictable.
There is no getting away from it. Whether a sole supplier has the monopoly or
whether there is competition, tyres will always dictate racing. For the 2005 season Michelin proposed a
harder compound to reduce the number of marbles on track, eliminating the dirty
line and leading to increased overtaking.
Now Pirelli attempt to create the spectacle through pit stop strategy. I know which I would rather see.
Pirelli’s wish to reduce the importance of aerodynamics hasn't really come to fruition. Adrian Newey,
Red Bull’s weapon in the aero war, ensures they are at the forefront in this
area. They have won three consecutive
constructors titles. As much as the tyre
supplier would like everything to be the same, Formula One is a team sport and
aerodynamic capabilities will never be equal, neither will driver skill. The Pirelli tyres definitely creates
contrived racing, however all the while we have exceptional people in the sport
like Adrian Newey and Fernando Alonso, individual skill within a team will prevail
over the false spectacle manufactured by the ‘tyre situation’.
