Just_a_fan wrote: ↑28 Jun 2023, 18:07
In order to change, an alternative supplier has to be able to demonstrate that they can possibly do a better job. So what high-load, single-seater, series currently run Bridgestone slicks?
People hark back to the early 2000s but F1 was very different then. Very, very different.
And it's worth pointing out that once Bridgestone were required to have a tyre do an entire race distance, Alonso in the Michelin-shod Renault was able to beat Michael on the Bridgestones designed specifically for Ferrari.
If we have to change, I'd rather see Michelin but they're not really interested in F1 sole-supplier status IIRC.
I don't want to get really technical here due to time constraints (there are a few posts of mine that deal with tires, tire construction and how tires work), so let's be straight and honest - you can hardly do a worse job than Pirelli. Bridgestone, Michelin and Goodyear are the leading tire manufacturers in the world, and all three have always done a great job in the Formula. And also in comparison to Pirelli, who never stood a chance against Goodyear or Michelin. F1 has certainly changed, but that doesn't change the fact that Michelin, Bridgestone and Goodyear would be a far better technological partner for F1 than Pirelli. The Kevlar belt, praised by Pirelli in 2013 as hypermodern, was already used by Goodyear in the mid-90s and Bridgestone was already using Kevlar belts in 1997, just as Michelin was already using Kevlar belts in the 90s. Bridgestone and Michelin even developed a completely different technology in the early 2000s and Pirelli came up with Kevlar in 2013, which clearly shows how far behind Pirelli was (almost 20 years) in terms of racing tire technology. And neither Michelin nor Bridgestone have stood still since then. Sure, F1 may have changed since Bridgestone left in 2010. But that's why a technologically leading tire manufacturer remains a technologically leading tire manufacturer. And it's not as if 178 kg cars are an impossible technical challenge for one of these tire manufacturers. Pirelli continues to use an amalgam of radial and cross-ply tires. Michelin and Bridgestone already used pure radial tires in the 80s (Michelin) and the late 00s, which can withstand higher loads without problems. They use less ply-steer and lighter, flexible sidewalls what to an extent brings the tread with it under lateral load. The tread runs squarer and less heat is generated, around the shoulder in particular. With a cooler tread compounds can be softer....But anyway - without getting too technical here - a tire that is completely sensitive to the slightest temperature fluctuations and that shows a thermal degradation after only a few laps of pushing by the drivers that it almost falls apart - Formula 1 can't have changed that much that Michelin or Bridgestone don't do this much better from a standing start. Both are tire manufacturers that are leaders in terms of technology and have always produced extremely good tires in F1. Without exception. Whereas Pirelli - past and present - has never produced a really decent tire in F1. This has been the case from the 80s until today. And the old wives' tales of - F1 has changed so much because the cars are 180 kg heavier and the cars today produce more downforce can be safely forgotten. It is not a problem for either Bridgestone or Michelin to produce a tire construction that can withstand these loads. It's just a question of construction and design. And your example of Alonso's Michelins and Schumacher's Bridgestones is perfect to illustrate why Pirelli is worse. Because the reason why Bridgestone's tires weren't able to last a race distance back then is the same reason why Pirelli's tires usually don't even last 10 laps when a driver is driving at the limit - because the Bridgestone was more of a cross-ply tire than a pure radial tire. Such tires need a stiffer sidewall which leads to the tread heating up more. More heat in the tread increases wear. Simply explained. That's why Bridgestone couldn't do a race distance, just as the Pirelli couldn't do 10 consecutive laps at the absolute limit without falling apart. Bridgestone then incredibly quickly developed the technology of a complete radial racing tire (which is far more difficult than you might think), which clearly shows Bridgestone's competence and was already using pure radial tires in 2006/2007. Pirelli, as I said, still doesn't do that today, but still runs an amalgam of cross-ply and radial tires like Bridgestone did 20 years ago... which says it all. Bridgestone would definitely be the better partner by far and without any doubt. And you would finally see drivers pushing for more than just 1.5 laps at a time again...without their tires falling apart...
