Michelin Coming Back?

[Nando]

in my opinion the inconsistency of the tires is exciting you dont know what you will get every race but yes the bridgestone michelin tire war was exciting....i dont understand why they made the 1 supplier rule

There is no inconsistency in the tires.

That´s actually a point where the teams hail Pirelli for.
If you mean inconsistencies for the teams then that´s another thing but the compounds themselves are not inconsistent according to the teams.

[WilliamsF1]

There is no inconsistency in the tires.

Everything still points to Pirelli supplying varying quality tyres at each event, rather than exactly the same compounds which are just really hard to get right.

Pirelli claim they're all exactly the same batch after batch, it's their word against the teams and drivers who suspect otherwise.

My vote is no. Pirelli haven't demonstrated they can make a consistent tyre. Actions speak louder than words.

[Jersey Tom]

in my opinion the inconsistency of the tires is exciting you dont know what you will get every race but yes the bridgestone michelin tire war was exciting....i dont understand why they made the 1 supplier rule

There is no inconsistency in the tires.

That´s actually a point where the teams hail Pirelli for.
If you mean inconsistencies for the teams then that´s another thing but the compounds themselves are not inconsistent according to the teams.

I'd like to hear those quotes from the teams hailing Pirelli.

[Cam]

On topic - I have actually noticed Michelin ads on TV recently (tonight in fact). Granted it's the old campaign, but the fact they're running is curious. Whether it's a ploy to tap into the current speculation or they are actually ramping up, who knows, but they're doing something proactive, and I like that in a tyre company.

[Nando]

in my opinion the inconsistency of the tires is exciting you dont know what you will get every race but yes the bridgestone michelin tire war was exciting....i dont understand why they made the 1 supplier rule

There is no inconsistency in the tires.

That´s actually a point where the teams hail Pirelli for.
If you mean inconsistencies for the teams then that´s another thing but the compounds themselves are not inconsistent according to the teams.

I'd like to hear those quotes from the teams hailing Pirelli.

One conspiracy theory circulating the paddock was that Pirelli may be mixing up the tyre quality deliberately to prevent the same drivers and teams prevailing; Hembery told the newspaper that the randomised distribution of the tyres, over which it has no control, made such a proposition unfeasible.

To the suggestion that the quality of tyres was inconsistent, Hembery said that the “possibility is very low” due to Pirelli’s quality controls. “Each tyre can be traced to the day it was manufactured, the process, the ingredients. In terms of consistency, we have the most advanced quality control systems in the world.” In addition, he said that no formal complaint has yet been issued, despite the opportunity given to each driver after every Grand Prix in the form of a report returned to the tyre supplier: “We cannot solve problems no one has raised,” he said.

“I have not received any comments from any team, or anything indicating a problem with the consistency of the tyres. In fact, we've had compliments. That is all I can say, unless someone shows us something we can look into.”

The people who have made up the whole "lottery" thing are normal fans, not teams or drivers.
Or are you implying it´s a conspiracy?

http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2012/05/09/w ... cise-tyre/

The inconsistency is a made up thing in internet forums.

[Jersey Tom]

No conspiracies. But you also have to take what PH and MW say with a grain of salt.

[Pierce89]

No conspiracies. But you also have to take what PH and MW say with a grain of salt.

JT, You're a good person to ask. Do you prefer watching races on the 2012 Pirelli or 2010 Bridgestone?

[Jersey Tom]

Neither, really. Nothing stand out. Mediocre racing either way really. Have been some good points battles at the top, other than that... meh.

I still maintain that for good racing to put things in the driver's hands and let them attack, consistently, corner after corner and lap after lap.. you want tires that are fairly consistent and durable. Several years ago there was the big thing about aero and losing downforce when you get into position to make a pass... throwing crap tires at the field is a crutch IMO. DRS on the other hand, I'm increasingly thinking was a good move.

Still have the issue of the field not being particularly close but that's a whole separate discussion.

[Cam]

Pirelli are trying to even the performance out, which is a bad thing in elite sport. It's akin to making Hussain Bolt run bare foot simply to give everyone else a chance. It takes away from the sport and leaves me asking questions should someone else win - because the favourite was hobbled. You don't peg back greatness, you build up everyone else.

I don't think Michelin should come back. They want a tyre war, which is no good for F1 either. We want an F1 team war.

put things in the driver's hands and let them attack, consistently, corner after corner and lap after lap.. you want tires that are fairly consistent and durable

Spot on. One set of tyres that lasts all race and let them go 100% for 70 odd laps. Bring back the driving - not driving Miss Daisy.

[astracrazy]

One set of tyres that lasts all race and let them go 100% for 70 odd laps. Bring back the driving - not driving Miss Daisy.

I think that will actually spread out the field more and you'll get less overtaking than ever - it would be very boring.

I'm not saying i don't want to see drivers going flat out but, for me, strategy is also part of formula 1 and that can throw up some great races. (like a lot this year where 50% through the points still aren't always decided)

[Cam]

Strategy is a huge part of F1, absolutely, is guess work? Having the focus on rubber takes away from everything else, which is what you don't want. Imagine having the braking system doing a Pirelli this year - spice it up by having brakes that drop off the cliff - you'll have exactly the same amount of careful driving and for what? To increase the show? No. People will argue about the brakes and why they implemented that. The focus will be all about who can manage the brakes and who's a better braker and trying to keep the brakes in the window - ffs, the horror (oh wait, we're living that now).

There's already many varied components on a car and we like to know that the car/team/driver made the race, not the tyre and not a control part. Brakes last all race, so should tyres.

Michelin coming back as sole supplier? Yep, happy days. But they won't. Time to get one of the other big brands in.

[bhallg2k]

[...]

Spot on. One set of tyres that lasts all race and let them go 100% for 70 odd laps. Bring back the driving - not driving Miss Daisy.

2005 sucked.

EDIT: Then again, I'm a Ferrari fan. So, it's possible my experience was different than others.

[Cam]

*sigh* we've been down this road bhall2gk. It's subjective as everyone likes different aspects. They can 'spice' the show up many ways without using control tyres to do it. In fact there's a whole list of great ideas which will work perfectly in another thread.

Seeing a driver 'nurse' a racing car - oh wait - seeing ALL drivers nurse a racing car is not fun.

[bhallg2k]

2005 featured a tire war between Bridgestone and Michelin in which one set of tires had to last throughout qualifying and the entirety of the race.

The Michelin-shod teams had some great races - Raikkonen at Suzuka comes to mind - because of Michelin's experience producing tires for endurance races like Le Mans. But, the Bridgestone teams were screwed from Day One, and it was not fun to watch at all.

The point is that there are no easy tire answers. It's all been done before.

[Cam]

lol, I think we agree for once, kind of?? A tyre war is not the answer. Many other categories have a control tyre with 2 compounds and the teams are balanced without radical results from fluke wins. It's not rocket science to figure it out.

Goodyear and Dunlop have a good history. Maybe give them another shot?