Pirelli says time is not right for tyre war
9 June, 2011
Paul Hembery
Jun.9 (GMM) Pirelli is open to a tyre war in Formula 1 but doubts the current economic climate is conducive for other manufacturer’s to become involved.
“At Pirelli we love competition,” Pirelli’s motor sport director Paul Hembery told spox.com.
“But this is not a question for the moment,” he explained, six races into Pirelli’s new three year exclusive contract as the sport’s sole supplier.
“We are in Formula 1 to serve the teams and at the moment there are no other suppliers. It would mean shifting the development and that would cost money. And that’s money that, in the current difficult economic climate, no one wants to spend,” he pointed out.
“Maybe that will change in the future, but currently we are only serving the needs of our customers,” opined Hembery.
He also acknowledged that this weekend in Montreal, Pirelli’s wet-weather tyres might get their first real action of the season – particularly after a severe storm struck the city on Wednesday.
“Admittedly, we don’t have as much experience with our rain tyres as with the others,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean we’re afraid of the water.”
“On the contrary,” insisted Hembery. “In Turkey there was a wet practice session and we got many valuable insights. Since then, we have even looked forward to our first rainy race.”
Related posts:
- Wet weather heading towards Montreal
- Pirelli preview the Canadian Grand Prix
- Pirelli: New version hard tyre for Spain
- Pirelli tyre choices for Turkey and beyond
- Pirelli admit tyre colours hard to see
