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Romain Grosjean believes the new aerodynamic regulations have done well to make it easier to follow a car in front.
However, the Frenchman says that Pirelli's tyres still suffer when they are in close vicinity to the rear of another car, which causes them to overheat.
Grosjean was following teammate Kevin Magnussen in the early stages of the race before his retirement and noticed the changes following a car in front.
“I was behind Magnussen,” he explained. “The new rules are great for following another car but the tyres are still what they were last year.
"As soon as you push, you slide, and then you lose the grip. So even though we can follow much easier than in the past overtaking is still very complicated.”
But McLaren's Carlos Sainz believes that the Drag Reduction System (DRS), which has become stronger this year due to the bigger rear wings, makes overtaking much easier.
"I think there’s been some overtaking,” he commented. “I think mainly it’s down to the DRS more than the rules. That’s my first impression, because it was still tricky to be closer to a car in front.
“I was there with [Lance] Stroll, I nearly got a look at him into turn one and turn three which last year would have been difficult. Maybe [it’s] a bit better. Still the cars are so fast and so dependent on downforce that it’s difficult to overtake.”
Speaking after the weekend, F1's managing director Ross Brawn says he was encouraged by the overtaking statistics from Albert Park, which were up compared to the event 12 months ago.
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Ram Samartha
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If true, closer following without making overtaking too easy sounds like a win for F1 and fans.