F1 tyres

[MarkG]

Has it got to the point now that the Pirelli tyres are spoiling F1, or if not, in danger of spoiling it soon??
It seems to me that the races are becoming a bit of a lottery now because of the tyres. I don't know the best solution and maybe there isn't a problem really, and it's just my view alone??
If they stick with having to use two types, I'd like to see them have to use a durable tyre and a really grippy tyre during a race, but the latter must be used for a set minimum of laps.

[ECW Dan Selby]

No. And here's why:

We moaned when we had Bridgestones. We moaned when we had the tyre war.

The bottom line is, everything has pluses and negatives. This, for me, has much more pluses than negatives.

I can't recall the last time we had racing this good...

Selby

[steve_r]

We are stuck with one supplier thanks to the debacle of the 2005 US GP.

The racing is currently very close and there is plenty of overtaking and we have had four different races winners out of fours races this season. Some purists may argue this is ruined due to the "artifical nature" of purposefully fragile tyres, plus DRS and Kers.

From a drivers perspective it may be frustrating, but the F1 raqcing on show is more exciting than the Schumacher dominated years of the mid 1990s and early 2000's, when one driver/team could dominate pretty much the entire season, and overtakes mostly happened in the pits.

Is F1 a lottery as a result of the tyres? Wel no, its just that the nature of F1 has changed in that tyre management is more important than it used to be.

[ECW Dan Selby]

The thing is, people may moan about tyres having too much of a say in the outcome.

But what about the engines? Should they have more of a say? The aero? Should that be king?

The main thing is the drivers are still driving and having to manage the race, as they would with fuel, with tyre deg, and any other variable. There's still skill.

Selby

[wnut]

It seems that MSC is not a big fan

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/99103

[rantanamo]

I think getting speed out of managing tyres is much more of a driver skill and a skill in developing the car than having the fastest engine and most perfect aero that varies little from race to race.

[safc_fan89]

With these tyres, the emphasis is on the drivers and teams to manage them. The team that does that best this season will stand a good chance of winning the title.

What's wrong with that? In the past, teams have won titles largely because their tyre manufacturer did a better job than the other. Did that reflect badly on the sport? Probably not, as it added another level of interest.

We had a season with no refuelling in 2010 with ultra-durable tyres and although the title race was close, most of the races, always the dry ones, were tedious. I'd much rather have what we have now than that.

[safc_fan89]

Originally Posted by wnut

It seems that MSC is not a big fan

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/99103

Yet he was more complimentary about them in winter testing...what's changed?

[ECW Dan Selby]

Originally Posted by safc_fan89

With these tyres, the emphasis is on the drivers and teams to manage them. The team that does that best this season will stand a good chance of winning the title.

What's wrong with that? In the past, teams have won titles largely because their tyre manufacturer did a better job than the other. Did that reflect badly on the sport? Probably not, as it added another level of interest.

We had a season with no refuelling in 2010 with ultra-durable tyres and although the title race was close, most of the races, always the dry ones, were tedious. I'd much rather have what we have now than that.

Yeh, this is probably a better way of explaining how I feel.

Selby

[MarkG]

I agree actually, with all the responses. We don't want to return to boring follow-my-leader races, and degrading tyres plus DRS, plus KERS, have all improved the show, but all have been necessary because of huge amounts of downforce along with very short braking distances. But with tyres degrading too much then maybe cars can't follow a car for very long or attempt passes because the tyres degrade so quickly due to sliding because of "dirty" air???
It was close to predictable with Red Bull last year, even with the tyres etc, and wet races helped more than anything.

Having said that though, I would rather have it as it is than the boring racing we had before.

[ECW Dan Selby]

And the thing is, this is more racing than the 'pass in the pits' rubbish we had for too long.

Selby

[wnut]

Originally Posted by MarkG

I agree actually, with all the responses. We don't want to return to boring follow-my-leader races, and degrading tyres plus DRS, plus KERS, have all improved the show, but all have been necessary because of huge amounts of downforce along with very short braking distances. But with tyres degrading too much then maybe cars can't follow a car for very long or attempt passes because the tyres degrade so quickly due to sliding because of "dirty" air???
It was close to predictable with Red Bull last year, even with the tyres etc, and wet races helped more than anything.

Having said that though, I would rather have it as it is than the boring racing we had before.

Ditto this!

Reckon Schu is getting Alzheimers?

[Marbot]

Tyre management is definitely the key to success.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/99110

[F1Pete]

Regardless of the tire situation, it is consistent amongst all the teams. Some teams are dealing with it better than others. I think the key this year is to have an efficient car that is easier on tire wear than the competition. Of course, part of that is the responsibility of the driver over the course of the race.

I like the new tire situation. After seeing what I witnessed yesterday, it goes to show you that pole position is not as important as it once was. Yes, Vettel won from pole, but I am referring to Kimi and Lotus strategy. In previous years the pole sitter seemed to cruise to victory. At least the pole sitter can't count on a win this year. Monaco should be a litter more interesting this year.

[ECW Dan Selby]

We need a repeat of last year's Monaco, without the stupid red flag/tyre change rule

Selby