With an unpopular rule change planned, F1 and the FIA run the risk of upsetting Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.
In order to permanently implement the Alternative Tyre Allocation (ATA) going forward, F1 and FIA executives are in discussions with Pirelli.
As Pirelli chief Mario Isola suggests, the unpopular ATA could be hired on a permanent basis, it appears that the concerns of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton have been disregarded by F1 and FIA executives.
At the Hungaroring and Monza, F1 tested the new rule, which decreased tyre allocations from 13 to 11.
This had an effect on qualifying as well because the rules stipulated that the hard tyre had to be used in Q1, the medium in Q2, and the soft in Q3.
To aid F1’s transition toward becoming more sustainable, the regulation change has been put to the test.
And Isola now suggests that the format might be added as a permanent part of the sport’s rules.
The benefits and drawbacks of the new format must be weighed, it is said. Then we’ll decide,” he said.
“If there is a need for some fine-tuning, for instance, taking into account one extra set for FP2 instead of seven sets for the race, with just six sets for the race which is more than enough, and possibly an extra set for VT2 with the same total number possible.
Fair enough, we compared how many laps they completed in FP1, VT2, and FP3 to those from the previous season, and they were remarkably similar.
“.
But after being tested for the first time at the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, some drivers found it to be an unappealing format. Verstappen and Hamilton were among the first to criticize, with both of them stating that the lack of racing on Friday was their main worry.
There was only one tire available for this session, according to Hamilton.
This change to the format that they made for this weekend is not particularly beneficial because it simply results in less running.
Not ideal, and I believe they throw away a lot of wet tires after each weekend.
Perhaps they should consider something similar instead of taking fans’ time away from the track.
“.
Verstappen concurred with his rival, stating that F1 should shift their attention away from sustainability to other goals. He explained: “With this new format, you are just incredibly constrained in the tire sets that you can use, and I didn’t want to use them today to at least have a little bit more of a better preparation tomorrow.
“Shame on you.
We’ll have to figure out how to make that better because there are so many people around and you don’t really run much.
I believe that what we are actually doing is just saving tires.
“.