Wolff pleased Pirelli 'withstood manipulation' over tyre complaints

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has offered his support to Pirelli who stayed "strong" over the criticism of its 2019 tyre.

Several teams have complained about the working window of the 2019 compound, which saw a vote take place in Austria to change back to the 2018-spec compounds.

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However, the vote was a 50/50 split, which meant that it didn't pass and confirmed the use of the 2019 spec tyres until the end of the season.

"I want to really say bravo to Pirelli who has stuck strong to their opinion, withstood manipulation and delivered us a product with which we could push until the very end," Wolff said, 

"Last year we had some blistering, this year the tyre is great and it's a bit humorous that the ones that complained the most pushed the tyre until the end [in Austria]."

Ferrari label tyre decision 'a shame'

While Mercedes was in favour to keep the 2019 spec tyres, rivals Ferrari was keen to see the change.

Team boss of the Maranello squad Mattia Binotto stated that it was a shame that the decision to stay with the current compounds was pushed through.

"I think we missed a great opportunity this weekend on the tyres decision. I think the entire F1, we should have done something," he said. "Sometimes we are discussing a lot and we are not acting.

"I still feel that it's a shame that we haven't changed the tyres for the rest of the season. That would have been a great opportunity to somehow try to close the field.”