Drivers criticise kerbs and communication as tyre trouble returns in Qatar

Formula 1 drivers were frustrated to learn through media reports of the tyre problems Pirelli had discovered at Losail International Circuit this weekend.

The series’ official tyre supplier notified the FIA at 10:30pm on Friday night it had discovered evidence of faults developing. Drivers did not learn of the problem until a public announcement was made at around 1pm the following day.

“We just wanted to understand the situation better,” said Kevin Magnussen. “We weren’t told until this afternoon and that’s a bit frustrating. We need to drive the cars, we want to know what’s going on.”

“I read it in the media,” said Valtteri Bottas. “Somebody sent me a link.”

The FIA “admitted that it was their bad that they didn’t communicate,” he added.

Grand Prix Drivers Association director George Russell said the FIA’s F1 representatives Nikolas Tombazis and Steve Nielsen “are aware and recognise the communication line between the FIA and the drivers isn’t strong enough, and we need to have better cooperation.”

“A lot of these things directly impact us and we can also give our first-hand view from the cockpit which can help aid some of these decisions,” he continued. “So they truly recognise that and I think this was a good example for them that we need to make some improvements in that communication process.”

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Carlos Sainz Jnr was particularly unhappy to learn about the problems with the tyres and the planned alterations to track limits through the media.

“We arrived today in the morning and we see the news in the press when no one informs us that there’s going to be track limits [changes],” said the Ferrari driver. “No one tells us that the tyre is delaminating or anything like that and we have to learn things from the press which is clearly not how things should be done.

“As the GPDA we were not happy with the situation and we hope that the collaboration starts getting better because reading things from the press when our safety is involved and our input should be considered is not good enough.”

The FIA is considering tighter restrictions on strategies for today’s grand prix, including a potential maximum limit on stint lengths. Sainz said he would support the changes on safety grounds, but questioned why more had not been done to address the problems with the track’s kerbs which F1 encountered when it last visited the Qatar track.

“If it’s necessary for safety, we have to do it,” he said. “But obviously [what] I don’t appreciate and I don’t like is that we were here in ’21, in the meantime, there’s been two years to react to these bad kerbs.

“There’s been a re-surface, a re-doing of the kerbs and for some reason the FIA persisted with this design of kerbs that are killing Pirelli’s tyres. I’m not blaming Pirelli, but at the same time clearly there’s something going on there.”

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Another driver, Lewis Hamilton, praised the kerb design on Friday before the tyre problem came to light. After Saturday’s sprint race he said F1 should consider testing at the Losail circuit in order to improve the tyres.

“We need some improvement on organisation skills, for sure, and procedures,” said Hamilton. “We ultimately need a better product, the tyre.

“I don’t feel like it’s solely the manufacturer’s problem or fault. We have such limited testing, we don’t test at a track that has hardcore, high-speed corners like this.

“I even suggested in the meeting we should do the three days that we get at the beginning of the year we should do here because this is the most hardcore on the tyres of the whole year.”

He added the problems F1 has with its tyres is partly a consequence of years of technical rules changes which have created heavier cars capable of extremely high cornering speeds.

“Whoever is making decisions in the FIA, the heaviest cars ever, more downforce than ever with all the fuel and everything, and then you have these tyre issues which is to be expected.

“If you think of back in the day, they were just as fast with half the downforce but way more grip on the tyres when they had Bridgestone and Michelins. So they’ve definitely got to look at that because I think next year is going heavier again.”

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