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Michelin still sure F1 needs different tyre approach

Published on 09 Sep 2015 16:15
3
By: Rob Veenstra

Michelin is sticking firm on its stance that F1 needs a change of tyre philosophy. After the blowout saga of Spa, and now the post-Monza tyre pressure controversy, it might be said that Michelin has put its nose in front of Pirelli when it comes to securing the official supply contract for 2017. Not so. Amidst all the recent tyre-related drama, Bernie Ecclestone - who will decide which manufacturer gets the nod - issued a statement of full support for Pirelli.

The statement, circulated by Ecclestone's company FOM, said Pirelli has been encouraged "to provide tyre compounds with performance limitations because tyre degradation contributes to the challenge and entertainment of a formula one race. "Thank you, Pirelli, for helping us to deliver excitement to formula one fans!" another section of the statement read.

Michelin, on the other hand, has never hidden its attitude that a F1 tyre should not be designed to degrade, but rather to allow the drivers to push hard and show their talent. "We have been very clear for some time now," said competition director Pascal Couasnon. "We're not saying that Pirelli are doing the wrong thing, what we're saying is that the philosophy of Michelin is different," he told UOL's Grande Premio.

"Two things," Couasnon explained. "First is that we believe a tyre supplier needs to show a positive aspect, but we believe a tyre that wears out after a few laps does not give us the possibility of developing a strong product. The second thing is that today, the tyres used in F1 are 13 inches with a very large sidewall, which is definitely not representative of what is used in normal cars, not even cars with high performance."

However, since the Spa tyre blowout story, some have pointed out that Michelin has also had serious safety problems of its own in the past. Asked if the absolute debacle of the 2005 US grand prix is denting Michelin's chances of working with F1 again from 2017, Couasnon said firmly: "No. That was long ago, and in that ten years, we have learned a lot."

"I think we prove it every weekend, in very difficult forms of motor sport, such as LMP1 with Porsche and Audi, and even FIA GT with Ferrari and Corvette and all these great brands that trust Michelin. When they have a choice, they choose Michelin," he insisted. "I am sure that the FIA and even F1 acknowledge that we are a very strong brand," said Couasnon.

And he didn't want to comment specifically on Pirelli's problems encountered at Spa, saying: "I don't know how the tyres were made and we were not there. We do know that Spa is a difficult track, but I have no comment to make on that subject." (GMM)

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Replies (3)

khasmir

Posts: 893
Nobody except Pirelli has any experience making tyres for this generation of F1 cars.
So Michelin can talk the talk but can they walk the walk?
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- Sep 9 2015 - 23:16
GBRDE25

Posts: 2
The load imposed on F1 tyres is far less than that imposed by Le Mans Prototypes with colossal torque from those diesel monsters, so Michelin should be well placed to produce a better tyre.
Also what possible benefit, in a commercial sense, can be gained by Pirelli when they make tyres that only last 10-20 laps, you wouldn't put those on your car would you!
- + 0
- Sep 10 2015 - 11:10
- khasmir
  
  Posts: 893
  Not sure about that. LMP cars have much bigger rims and the current F1 hybrid PU's also produce a lot of torque. And 2017 should bring quite a bit of extra downforce and with the wider cars it will increase the load on the tyres even more.
  I'm not so happy with the current Pirelli tyres but seems like Michelin are a little overconfident that they can do a better job.
  And nothing has been decided yet to switch to 18 inch rims for 2017. It might look nice but performance should come first. Except Formula e most if not all open wheel racing classes still use small rims with big tyres, so must be a good reason for that.
  + 0
  
  Sep 10 2015 - 18:42