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Williams' Chief Technical Officer Pat Symonds believes that Formula One's front-runners will have an advantage when the new-for-2017 bigger Pirelli tyres are introduced.
Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull will provide the Italian firm with modified older cars in order for tyre testing to be carried out, beginning in August.
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But Symonds believes the teams supplying the cars stand to gain an advantage, drawing comparisons to when Lotus previously supplied a car for tyre testing.
"It's a huge advantage and I think something we need to consider," he said. "They are blind tests but what guides the direction of development are the comments."
"When Lotus was testing they would say what they liked and what they didn't like, and based on those comments, Pirelli developed," he continued. "Lotus went through its golden era when Pirelli was using their car,"
"So those who will do the (2017) testing have an advantage, and we can't participate. It's very expensive," he revealed. "Pirelli is paying for it in part, but not covering all of the expenses, so we can't be a part of it."
Pirelli are conducting tests of 2017-spec rubber at Silverstone this week, using a 2014 Mercedes driven by Pascal Wehrlein.
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