The choice of Pirelli for the Brazilian GP deemed “very dangerous”
The Russian Grand Prix did not excite observers, some of whom criticized Pirelli's tire choice, believing that a softer allocation wouldn't have made a difference. Meanwhile, its decision for Brazil is being strongly questioned.
After a Russian Grand Prix that some described as calm or even boring, blaming it on soft and medium tires whose degradation was not sufficient, Pirelli did not fail to respond, through its motorsport director Paul Hembery. At the same time, strong criticism was raised regarding the tire allocation for Brazil.
The Briton believes that the race would not have been more exciting with the soft and super-soft tires – usually used for street circuits: « We are criticized no matter what we do, » he begins, referring to complaints about the excessive degradation in the previous two seasons.
« I think people just have short memories, and that’s a problem. It puts us in an impossible situation, as you can imagine. I’m not sure it would have drastically changed the scenario if we had brought the super-softs, » he explained to Autosport.
For Hembery, the difficulty was the track at the Sochi circuit, which did not react in the usual manner, certainly due to its novelty: « Even the soft tires were setting their best times at the end of each stint, so I think it was a combination of circumstances. The surface certainly had an impact, and maybe that will change in the future. It could be related to its recent laying, there were certain factors at play, providing or helping to find gradual grip on a soft surface, and that’s why the performance was improving. »
On the side of Christian Horner, the Red Bull team principal, they hope that the Italian manufacturer draws conclusions from this Grand Prix: “I think we need to find a balance. It’s the first time we’ve been on this surface, and this asphalt. The Pirelli tires were very durable on this circuit, so hopefully they’ll learn some lessons; this old-school style of racing is not exciting. The races we’ve had this year, with two or three stops, have been really exciting and that’s what we hope for the remaining three races.”
A “very dangerous” choice for the Brazilian GP
At the same time, and while Pirelli announced shortly before the Russian race its choices for the last three rounds of the season, some drivers expressed surprise or were very critical, particularly regarding the tires that will be used for the Brazilian Grand Prix.
« If you look at the choices for the next races, they are a bit strange, » said Fernando Alonso. « Having the mediums and hards in Brazil is very surprising. Obviously, it’s their decision, we have to try to help them with each of their queries. »
For Felipe Massa, this decision is a risk taken by the Milan firm: « It’s dangerous, very dangerous. Firstly, Interlagos has never been a circuit where we use mediums and hards, it’s a circuit where we can even fit super-softs and softs, but being conservative, softs and mediums. I have no idea why they chose mediums and hards, it’s completely unacceptable, » said the Paulista to Adam Cooper.
« It’s a circuit where you might have rain, it’s a circuit where it can be cold, it’s a circuit where conditions might make you take a risk by putting on dry tires, and it’s so tough that it could be dangerous, so I don’t understand that. And they’re changing the asphalt: normally, on any circuit where they change the asphalt, it becomes easier. I don’t know why they chose these tires. I even talked to the guy from Pirelli, and he told me I was right. »
In 2013, Pirelli had already brought medium and hard tires to Interlagos, even though the compounds were less conservative at the time than they are today, due to last season’s controversies.
At the beginning of the season, already, the Italian manufacturer faced criticism from drivers during the Spanish Grand Prix. Sergio Pérez, in particular, criticized the tires considered « very hard » and « too conservative », preventing any attack. Again, the tires in question were the hard and medium tires and, as for Brazil, these denominations had also been used in 2013 at the Catalunya circuit.
In practice, compared to the 2013 season, Pirelli has changed its tire allocations seven times. As shown in the table below, two Grand Prix events have seen a softening of the medium/hard tires used in 2013: Belgium and the United States, where teams will have soft/medium tires available to them.
