IMHO he didn't drive as clean as he used to and created bad flatspot, thus the vibration which broke the suspension. I am a Kimi fan and really saddened to see this happen on the last lap. I wish he drive better in Canada and win Anyone also think this was his own fault?
The flat spot did cause it, but what really caused the flat spot? I'd say the combination of the tire, the brakes, and Kimi.
NO. The fault lies in the rules. the fact that you cannot change a flatspotted tire since it is not a safety issue is pure crap. If his suspension failure caused by the vibration from the flatspot is not a safety issue then what is. Lets see driver off into the wall possibly getting hurt or even worse a marshall or spectator getting hurt. Button getting taken out by an out of control car and getting hurt because he was not ready for the impact. Alonso or any other driver getting a flat tire and going off due to the bits and pieces of Kimi's car all over the racing line. How can any of those possible scenarios not be called a safety issue. It is time to do away with the 1 tire rule. It is just plain and simple stupid plus how can all of the Michelins that finish the race without all 4 grooves visible be called a legal tire?
Kimi flat spotted it at least twice and then made the crucial mistake of not replacing the tire. It could have worked, but it didn't.
The same manufacturer, but not the same compounds. They're are more differences than "hard" or "soft tires." Each tire is made to the specs that each team wants. So their tire could've played in a part, but the braking system could also be at fault. Kimi also could've been too aggressive, but I think the brakes played a bigger part.
Ask yourself this: Would the tire have flat-spotted if he hadn't made the mistake? My answer is most definitely not. The only thing "icey" about Kimi is his personality.
The rules allow for a tire degraded like that to be changed. It is up to Charly Whiting to agree with it or not and I'm quite sure now that we have seen how a flat spotted tire can cause suspension failure, Charly will be very forgiving if people come in to replace ONE tire. No need for a rule change.
I think they got too greedy and were hoping the tire would hold up til the end. They could've pitted and taken 2nd, but I think Kimi would've questioned himself forever if he could've won with that vibrating tire. At least he knows for sure now.
That I don't know either. Then it must be the team's fault/greed not to send him in to change and take 2nd or 3rd
I don't agree. As a result of this rule everybody tries to stay on the track in order to avoid a green table decission - let's just assume that Kimi did come in to change the tire. He wouldn't have known if the FIA would approve of the change and he could have been penalised after the race. The one tire rule in theory is okay but in reality it's a farce and dangerous.
Just look at past races and tires that were replaced and nobody penalized. It is also normally a clear case when a driver comes in to just change one tire outside of the usual pitstop rotation. That by itself is punishment enough (throwing him 30 sec down in the field) and no green table decision necessary. And especially after we have all seen what a flat spotted tire can do, going forward Whiting will definitely be leniant. But regardless it was quite obvious from the on board camera that this bumping tire was a severe risk and I'm quite certain Kimi would not have been penalized for changing that one tire.
Andreas, True this is how the rule is written but Still we should not have a rule that has so much grey area to it that it is up to one person to decide if the change was legal or not. It should be spelled out in black and white as to what is a valid safety issue or not a valid one. And if a team changes a tire that did not fall under those guidelines then fine the team or exclude them from the race. Enough of the Micky Mouse rules that have tons of gray area that keep them open to various interpretations. For example the way the rule is written they could say that massa's flapping piece of tire was not a safety issue since the tire had not deflated even though it was sawing off the front wing. Again it is open to interpretation and this is where the problems can occur. JMHO Rob
On 6 laps before finish line it showed horrible vibration and I already felt that the tire won't last. I actually did, but not the suspension. Very scary to see that kind of vibration at 300 km/h. Regarding tire change, I don't think any team dare to do it unless it shows a puncture or some sort. FIA is very tough on any team. Mclaren surely wants to avoid penalty and/or lengthy debate, petition, etc. It turned out to be a disaster for them
Agreed on that part. And a good start would be to define in mm how much and many threads have to be left on the tires after the race. Simple to measure, yet not in the rules. They make a big deal out of the 15 seconds for the pit crew to leave (Trulli), yet something really important like thread left after the race is completely open to interpretation. I don't get it. Having said that I'm thinking back on 1994 where IMHO Schumacher was wrongly penalized for too many mm off his barge board simply because it got holes ripped into it when he slid over the cerrated curbs at Spa. Maybe to avoid unjust situations like that, the FIA prefers ambiguity?
And when a sanctioning body starts to do this with the rules then all of a sudden you have each team comming up with what they feel is legal and what they feel is not legal and then all we have is finger pointing and child like behavior in the pit lanes. Then if a team does get caught then they are off to court trying to see who is in the right on the matter. Look back to 2003 with Michelin taking advantage of a loop hole in the regs about tire tread width. That should have never been an issue if the FIA would have just put into the rule that "the thread width is measured before or after the tire has been put into use, At the inspectors discression." That right there would have taken the grey out of that rule and the matter would never had happened. Rob
Quite right. And related to that, did you know that BAR Honda continue to use their "illegal" tank system? Not sure whether they do that to maintain face or because it really helps them. But the FIA made them add extra ballast to the car.
In reality i like the design of BAR's fuel tank as it insures that the engine will never starve for fuel. It would not suprise myself if what happened with the BAR case is the fact that when the team set up the car they forgot about the extra fuel and did not factor the weight in. As if you notice the FIA could not prove that BAR was intentionaly running under weight, Just that they found the car under weight. Rob
I think his tyres caused him those 2 mistakes and because of that his suspension was damaged. He should have preserved his car and tyres and accept the 2nd spot.
Couldn't agree more. We have seen spectators killed by flying F1 wheels decades ago. We have seen drivers getting killed due to improper or damaged tires. When accidents start to happen once again, the big brand car manufacturers will leave F1 just like Mercedes did in 1955. E.g. Renault has been working for years to publicly associate itself with Volvo- and Saab-like car security, earning 5-star NCAPs, etc. They put hundreds of millions into this venture. It would be a brand disaster for them to see a Renault F1 car hurting anybody on or near the track. F1 rules of 2005 are plain russian roulette, nothing else. Mostly reminds me of ancient roman gladiator games, where guys had to fight wearing only a half of an armour or other insufficent gear to make the outcome of fight unpredictable. Of course there was big carnage every time. The solution is to allow for tire swaps, but with a painful pitstop penalty. E.g. first time 10 seconds extra pitstop stay for any wheel replaced or 30 seconds for all four. Second time 15 secs per wheel or 45 on all four. Third time 20 secs or a whole minute for a full set. Fourth time you are disqualified because such bad tires are dangerous! Of course the times I gave are just guesses. After Europe GP the drivers must ask themselves: how many of them are willing to get hurt or maimed solely to break Ferrari's domination? Now that Scuderia's championship dreams are all but gone, teams may safely demand immediate rule changes.
