Pirelli are looking at bringing the ‘cliff’ back to its tyres in 2016, as it attempts to force drivers into making at least two stops during a race.
A large number of races this season have been one-stops, which goes against Pirelli’s mandate to ensure most are between two and three.
Formula 1’s sole tyre supplier is hoping it can return to its earlier days, which saw tyres suddenly lose grip, also known as ‘dropping off the cliff’, when they reached a certain point of degradation.
“We would love to bring back a proper ‘cliff’,” Pirelli’s Paul Hembery is quoted by Motorsport. “I don’t know if we have enough opportunity to get a solution that works perfectly during the Abu Dhabi test [in December].
“The ideal situation is that we have a cliff back so we can get back to two or three stops, rather than pushing the stint lengths as has been a tendency in the last few years.”
Hembery is hoping the change can be achieved through a chemical process, rather than a change in compound.
“The compounds won’t change but there are things we can do inside the tyre to try to create a cliff. It can be chemically engineered,” he explained.
“It is what we are trying, so it becomes unbeneficial to stay out for longer stints. It means you have to come in and change.
“If there is one input the teams have had, it is to get back to two or three stops rather than the predominant one stop racing we have had this year.”
