Rosberg suffers tire blow-out during Pirelli test in Bahrain
ERJ staff report (TP)
Sakhir, Bahrain − According to a tweet posted by Nico Rosberg, but later deleted, Pirelli tire blow-outs are not a thing on the past in Formula 1, reported Richard Beech for The Irish Mirror.
The Mercedes driver complained to his followers on Twitter that one of his tires gave out on him during winter tire testing in Bahrain, causing him to spin his car while travelling at full speed – 320 kph.
The Pirelli tires became a hot issue during the 2013 season, with a number of controversial incidents caused by blow-outs. Fellow Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton bemoaned the issue after his left-rear tire exploded at Silverstone, he was one of four drivers to suffer such a failure at the race.
Former F1 driver David Coulthard labelled the blow-outs as "driver killers".
Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and Toro Rosso are all taking part in the Pirelli tire test in Bahrain, in order to help develop new rubber for the 2014 season.
New specification on the 2014 cars will require a very different type of tire to the 2013 cars, which put an enormous level of downforce through the tire and down onto the track. The new V6 engines, with higher torque, will require less downforce.
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Full story from The Irish Mirror
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