After what happened at the Belgian Grand Prix and now in Sochi, Formula 1 is thinking of ways to make Formula 1 more drivable in heavy rain. However, Pirelli does not believe it can do much with its product.
What lived in the Belgian Grand Prix It was a very serious wake-up call to Formula 1, which nevertheless has been dragging a problem for years in conditions of heavy rain.
And this weekend in Sochi the situation is repeating itself, with the cancellation of all the sessions of the lower categories and, for now, also the Free 3 of Formula 1.
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Many point to the rain tires of Pirelli, because they consider that they have a very specific range of use that does not contribute to the cars having the necessary grip in a wide range of situations.
Nevertheless, Mario isola the solution is not easy, as it could create other underlying problems. «I spoke with many people after Spa, because obviously nobody wants to see another Spa again, with people waiting for hours and then nothing happens. When it comes to tires, we can do very little because they are designed to ensure the transition between full and intermediate wet, and changing this design goal is not ideal because then you can create a space.
The visibility
The Pirelli technical manager emphasizes a decisive point, visibility. Designing tires that evacuate more water would make it even worse.
“Making a tire that is better able to disperse water would not help, because this would increase the spray, further worsening visibility. Therefore, this would probably make it worse. I really don’t know what we could do about the tires.
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“The fact that we introduced the wider tires in 2017 has also increased the spray. Previous rain tires were capable of dispersing 60 liters per second at 300 km / h, and now we are talking about 85 », reports Mario Isola.
And, of course, it’s more water in suspension. Unless we find a way to block the water from being sprayed, I really don’t know what we can do. Honestly, I don’t have a solution for that ».
Adapted circuits
One of the solutions that Isola proposes is the adaptation of the circuits so that they are more capable of draining the water deposited on the asphalt, thus considerably reducing the aquaplaning and the trail of water that makes visibility so difficult.
«I believe that with the knowledge that we have now, it is probably possible to design an asphalt capable of avoiding standing water, or design circuits with a kind of bell, which could keep the water away from the track. It is not easy, obviously we cannot ask to redesign all the circuits. But something can be done with the experience we have from the last races. But when we have too much water, then it is difficult ”, admits the Italian.
And I think it’s the same for any outdoor sport. If the intensity of the rain is enormous, stop any type of competition, soccer or any other outdoor event ”, he concludes.