Publicat in: February 1, 2009, Vizualizari: 72
Asphalt Stages on Gravel Tyres in Cyprus and on Snow Tyres in Ireland
The first day of mixed-surface Cyprus Rally (13-15 March) will be run exclusively on asphalt stages, but the FIA has recently declared that cars must use gravel tyres throughout the event. Originally world championship regulations declared that competitors had a choice of both asphalt (18 inch) and gravel (15 inch) tyres for the event, with the facility of changing suspensions at the end of the first leg of the rally. The decision to insist on single tyre type was made by an FIA working group, following explanations by rally teams that the changeover of suspensions settings and brakes would be difficult within a limited time frame. Pirelli rally tyre manager Mario Isola said "we are not happy about this decision because we do not have experience of running in these conditions. We only knew about the change a week or so ago".
Cyprus Rally Clerk of the Course Takis Kyriakides said he was personally unable to give an opinion about the decision, but stated the matter was discussed at the FIA at the end of last year. Citroen Total team confirmed they knew the proposal was being considered but we were only advised that the rule had been changed a week or so ago. The last world championship Cyprus Rally was run in 2006 when competitors were required to drive the all-asphalt downtown stage in Limassol on gravel tyres. Dani Sordo lost control of his Citroen Xsara WRC and drove into a roundabout. The stage was halted and then cancelled for safety reasons. Although details of the route have not been publicly released, teams have been alerted that the first day of the rally is the longest day in terms of stage length, and that cars have only two sets of tyres available to use through the day.
These are crazy days and few topics more crazy than the issues concerning Pirelli's control tyres. When it was understood that there could easily be snow lying on stages of Rally Ireland, it was obvious that a snow tyre must also be made available for crews. But there was not to be any snow, though it was soon discovered that the snow tyres were better in the rainy conditions than the alternative soft compound tarmac tyres!. Christian Loriaux, M-Sport's Technical chief said: "It is a fantastic idea, it will save a lot of money! We were completely against the idea of taking tarmac tyres to the event, it is the same for everybody so why should there be a problem? If there is a wear problem, you must do like Marcus (Gronholm) did in Greece three years ago. You must adjust to the conditions to get the best results. It is better to go slowly so that you finish the stage, than to go flat-out and destroy the tyres".
Then Loriaux got to the point. "Clever people will win. Nobody is going to drive fast on the asphalt stages in Cyprus. They are going to back-off in order to get a better running order position on the road for the gravel stages which start on the second day!"
3mmm
photo: Mario Isola
Asphalt Stages on Gravel Tyres in Cyprus and on Snow Tyres in Ireland
The first day of mixed-surface Cyprus Rally (13-15 March) will be run exclusively on asphalt stages, but the FIA has recently declared that cars must use gravel tyres throughout the event. Originally world championship regulations declared that competitors had a choice of both asphalt (18 inch) and gravel (15 inch) tyres for the event, with the facility of changing suspensions at the end of the first leg of the rally. The decision to insist on single tyre type was made by an FIA working group, following explanations by rally teams that the changeover of suspensions settings and brakes would be difficult within a limited time frame. Pirelli rally tyre manager Mario Isola said "we are not happy about this decision because we do not have experience of running in these conditions. We only knew about the change a week or so ago". Cyprus Rally Clerk of the Course Takis Kyriakides said he was personally unable to give an opinion about the decision, but stated the matter was discussed at the FIA at the end of last year. Citroen Total team confirmed they knew the proposal was being considered but we were only advised that the rule had been changed a week or so ago. The last world championship Cyprus Rally was run in 2006 when competitors were required to drive the all-asphalt downtown stage in Limassol on gravel tyres. Dani Sordo lost control of his Citroen Xsara WRC and drove into a roundabout. The stage was halted and then cancelled for safety reasons. Although details of the route have not been publicly released, teams have been alerted that the first day of the rally is the longest day in terms of stage length, and that cars have only two sets of tyres available to use through the day.
These are crazy days and few topics more crazy than the issues concerning Pirelli's control tyres. When it was understood that there could easily be snow lying on stages of Rally Ireland, it was obvious that a snow tyre must also be made available for crews. But there was not to be any snow, though it was soon discovered that the snow tyres were better in the rainy conditions than the alternative soft compound tarmac tyres!. Christian Loriaux, M-Sport's Technical chief said: "It is a fantastic idea, it will save a lot of money! We were completely against the idea of taking tarmac tyres to the event, it is the same for everybody so why should there be a problem? If there is a wear problem, you must do like Marcus (Gronholm) did in Greece three years ago. You must adjust to the conditions to get the best results. It is better to go slowly so that you finish the stage, than to go flat-out and destroy the tyres". Then Loriaux got to the point. "Clever people will win. Nobody is going to drive fast on the asphalt stages in Cyprus. They are going to back-off in order to get a better running order position on the road for the gravel stages which start on the second day!"
3mmm
photo: Mario Isola
Parteneri:
