Evident, speedsense.
Wow, watching the times of the race simulation (thanks, Blackout) I find incredible how those tyres degrade. No gains from fuel usage, but an almost constant increase in lap times.
Notice how when tyres are changed (lap 60, I assume) the difference is 2 seconds (because of the fuel load being less) between the start of the data in lap 41 and lap 61 (lap time goes from 1:30 to 1:28). This means that fuel usage gives you 1 tenth of a second per lap (you have gained 2 seconds in 20 laps), but you are actually losing around 2 tenths or a bit more per lap, watching the "slope" of the points, always increasing in time (5 seconds in the second stint of 20 laps, 4.5 seconds in the first one). So, degrading of tyres is roughly 0.3 seconds per lap (in this simulation, in this circuit, in this car,
with this driver).
That, or I am reading in this graph things that doesn't exist. Anyway, I would start to forget about late braking or late apex this year, if I were driving...
"Smooth" Schumacher has a chance... I would have never, ever, figured out that the guy could pull this one! Didn't Pirelli suited the tyre to his "style"? I guess mods will be busy this year, btw, if all I read in this graph becomes true. How will Alonso manage the "problem" he seems to have? Again, I might be reading too much, but that's what you pay me for...