Valtteri Bottas in the cockpit of the Williams FW35
Williams rookie Valtteri Bottas believes that Pirelli remains receptive to feedback from Formula 1 teams and drivers regarding the 2013 tyres.
This year’s Pirelli rubber has been the most controversial paddock topic of the 2013 season by far, as teams grapple with the Italian marque’s heavily-degrading and difficult-to-understand product.
Amid the controversy, and the paddock din, the decision was made to drop the ‘soft’ tyre compound from the Bahrain allocation, while a tweak to the ‘hard’ compound has been made for Barcelona and beyond.
Among the gripes has been the claim that the 2013 tyres has altered the very nature of the racing.
“I think that has happened sometimes,” agreed Finn Bottas.
“In China, for example, I concentrated only on my race because I knew my strategy was different and there was no point trying to fight for positions,” he told Brazil’s Totalrace.
“You have no chance and sometimes it’s even better not to compete. That’s not cool,” he added.
“But I think that Pirelli has heard the teams and acted accordingly. Already in Bahrain they decided to take another compound, and this should be repeated in the future.”
Indeed, it is believed Pirelli is still toying with the idea of a tweak to the ‘soft’ compound. (GMM)