08/04/2013
NEWS STORY
Jean Alesi has come to the defence of Pirelli insisting the Italian manufacturer should be lauded for its impact on racing and not blamed for teams' shortcomings.
Whilst, as a brand ambassador, the former F1 star does have a vested interest, it is correct that Pirelli was given a mandate to produce tyres that deliberately degrade and thereby add spice and uncertainty to the racing. However, with Red Bull leading a number of teams unhappy with the 2013 rubber, Alesi has jumped to its defence.
"Drivers will have to find the best compromise between performance and degradation, which is exactly the way that it has always been in Formula One," said, looking ahead to this weekend's Chinese Grand prix.
"I raced through many different tyre regulations and suppliers during my career - even in the era of qualifying tyres - and while they all had different aspects, Pirelli is the company that has supplied the most entertainment to all the fans.
"So far we have seen two fantastic races," he enthused. "This is exactly what was asked, and in my opinion just what the sport needed. One thing that doesn't change at all is that the best teams will always be the most successful, so there is no point for anybody to complain because this will always quite rightly be the case, whatever you do with the regulations."