Tyre management not one of McLaren's problems
- Published on 20 Jun 2017 12:49
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- By: Fergal Walsh
Amid McLaren's issues with engine supplier Honda, it is believed that there is some good news afoot with the Woking outfit's chassis. The MCL32 is reportedly very good on tyre management compared to the rest of the manufacturers on the grid.
Racing director Eric Boullier says that they demanded data from the FIA and Pirelli after Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull tested the 2017 tyres over the winter. This extra information gave them more of an idea how to prepare the tyres for the season.
"We were the only team to send an observer to all 24 days of testing, and we made more demands for data that the FIA and Pirelli wanted to give us initially," Boullier said. "So from the beginning, we had a good understanding of the tyres, without the need to build a 2015 (test) car."
Despite the good news, McLaren is expected to struggle massively this weekend in Azerbaijan, on a track that contains the longest straight in Formula 1: "I think we can expect another tough challenge for the team," Honda chief Yusuke Hasegawa said. "We're going through a difficult time at the moment, but we're doing all we can to rectify the situation."
Fergal Walsh
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Replies (4)
Login to replymclarenfan1968
Posts: 1,027
No shit.
renaultFanF1
Posts: 80
Of course it's not an issue because you don't have enough power to damage tyres
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Not necessarily the case. A team could also design a car to compensate for the weaker PU by getting more heat into the tyres, which would switch on the tyres faster but could also wear them out faster if done incorrectly.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
They have 99 problems, but tyres aint one.