AlphaTauri Team Principal Franz Tost has called on Formula 1 to move away from using tyre blankets, which he describes as “complicated”.
The blankets are used extensively throughout a grand prix weekend while the cars are parked in the garage, ensuring that the tyres have heat generated when they pull out onto the circuit.
They were originally banned for the 2021 (now 2022) technical regulations, before the decision was reversed.
Tost believes that F1 should outlaw the blankets from being used during race weekends, citing cost and sustainability factors.
“Three or four years ago, I was really pushing very hard that we get rid of these tyre blankets,” Tost said. “Four weeks ago, or three weeks ago, I approved the order for next year’s new tyre blankets, €375,000. I ask myself – what for?
“First of all, we spent hell of [a lot of] money for this tyre blankets. Second, it’s technically very complicated now, it’s got a known science. It’s not only to heat the tyres, it’s to heat the rims, it’s to heat the carcass and it’s to heat the surface in the correct way.
“Every team, four or five engineers [are] working for this process. Then there’s the sustainability. We need a lot of energy for running this process with the tyre heating.”
F1’s tyre pressures typically drop after the heating blankets are taken away and the car emerges from the garage.
With teams looking to run pressures as low as they can throughout race weekends, which leads to more grip at the expense of a higher chance of failures, Tost believes the issue would be easier to monitor if the FIA installed a sensor with no tyre blankets factoring into their measurements.
“It would be so easy, no blankets and the FIA should come up with a sensor just to measure the pressure,” Tost said. “That’s it.
“If there are no blankets and the FIA can check the tyre pressures, it’s easy. I’m just asking myself why we make everything more complicated. Pirelli simply has to provide us with tyres that work under these conditions.
“In former times, F1 didn’t have tyre blankets, it’s a long time ago, but it’s possible. Other categories also don’t have tyre blankets. It’s a little bit complicated, everything. And next year we start with a completely new tyre.”
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