Martin Brundle, former driver turned commentator, has jumped to Pirelli’s defence following a barrage of criticism levelled at Formula 1’s tyre supplier.
The Italian manufacturer is being pressured by a select few teams to alter its compounds to avoid excessive degradation, but Pirelli has refused to change them at the request of “one or two teams”. They will however review the tyes after Bahrain to determine if they’re having a negative impact on the racing.
Brundle however believes Pirelli has struck a balance between entertainment and pure racing – which, according to him, is what the fans want to see.
“They have only done what was asked of them — to make the racing more exciting,” he told SpeedWeek.
“They could easily come out with hard tyres for the next Grand Prix. But do we really want that?
“The balance has to be right. I don’t think anybody wants to see boring one-stop races. On the other hand, five stops would be farcical.
“I think two to three stops is a good compromise,” he added.
As well as teams complaining, a handful of drivers have also complained that they’re not being allowed to drive at 100% because it’s damaging the tyres too quickly.
Brundle admitted it’s a bit of a juggling act to find a balance.
“I can understand if some drivers are not happy — we do want to see the fastest guy win, not the best at managing the tyres.
“It is a dilemma: should the sport have the upper-hand, or the entertainment value? We must never forget that the first could not exist without the second.”
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