FIA investigates the allegations
In Brazil, it was once again Red Bull's turn in the role of accuser. This time it was about filling the tires with water. The trick is supposed to help cool the tires better from the inside over long distances. The water is to be injected via the valves. Allegedly, even small amounts achieve the desired effect. Several teams are said to benefit from this practice during long runs, including McLaren.
The FIA is already investigating the allegations. There were no suspicious observations at the last two races in Austin and Mexico City. Pirelli would have to report the slightest irregularities to the FIA technical commissioners. According to the Italian tire manufacturer, however, there has not been a single suspicious incident this year.
Neither Pirelli nor the FIA want to comment officially on the case. However, there is talk behind closed doors that the story is just another storm in a teacup.
How does the water get into the tire?
When applying the trick, the first question must be how the water is supposed to get into the tires in the first place without Pirelli noticing. And how the water is supposed to disappear again after the race, apart from through evaporation. Tires and rims are coded. The FIA randomly assigns the tires to the rims reported by the teams. Mounting and demounting of the tires is carried out by Pirelli's service technicians.
Once the tires have been fitted, no team is allowed to tamper with them. The teams themselves do not have the tools to remove tires from the rim and put them back on. Tires cannot be reused after they have been removed once. The only access point through which water can be filled in is therefore the valve. But injecting fluids unnoticed would be extremely difficult with the number of watchdogs and Pirelli engineers in the garages.
Such a trick would also be highly risky. If the water does not evaporate before the tires are removed in the three to four hours after the race, suspicion is quickly aroused. Red Bull allegedly experimented with water in the tires many years ago. At that time, the trick was not yet expressly prohibited. But the FIA promptly closed this loophole. In the defending champion's camp, it is now assumed that former Red Bull employees have unpacked and refined this trick again in their new teams.
