Drivers worried about 'dangerous' slicks.

these are professional drivers. they have to learn to drive within their capabilities and with the equipment provided. if they dont, then they will probably have accidents, but it would be their own fault. ALL drivers will have to cope with the same "problems". i wonder how long it wil be before some team has a "hot corner" in their garage, thus allowing a slightly warmer tyre. wouldnt it be great if a tyre had to last a full race! incidentally, will there be a soft and a hard compound? how will these be marked? perhaps banding on side as per champcar will be done.

Here's a cunning trick I've learned through my years as one of the millions of ordinary drivers who manage not to crash and die everyday: drive slower when there's less grip.

I don't see what their problem is - they're supposed to be the best drivers in the world and they can't figure out that if there's less grip, you just have to carry less speed into bends.

I'm getting a bit sick of their complaining actually - I wish they'd just get on with it. You don't hear rally drivers saying, "Ooo, snow's a bit dangerous." or, "Oooo, I don't like the look of that black ice". They just slow down and get on with it.

If you can't take driving an F1 car, retire.

well, im sure bridgestone will continue to develop there tyre to avoid this problem.

F1 is the only series to run grooved tyres and one of the only ones to use tyre warmers, yet no other series running slick bridgestone tyres have this problem, so im sure it will all be fine and dandy by 2009.

If tyre warmers are being banned because of cost, then it is a step too far; they shouldn't be banned problem solved. The cost cutting has actually made F1 impotent to a degree, for example not being aloud to develop the engines; only silly things like aerodynamics and suspension components. Part of the excitment of F1 was unlimited development. Everybody knows the pecking order will be the same in Barcelona; you can't get 3 seconds a lap from a few aero and suspension tweaks; you could from an extra 100bhp over your competitors. If people can't afford F1 they shoudn't be in it. Bring back the expensive fast cars and get rid of these cheap boring slow ones. I agree with Eddie Irvine F1 has

Did anyone actually read the article? The safety concerns relate primarily to the fact that cars with warmed up tyres would circulate 10s a lap faster than cars on out laps etc. Such a big gap in performance isn't advisable.

TBH, this is the pinnacle of motorsport. Why the hell have tyre warmers been banned? 4 Tyre warmers would cost a FRACTION of what a modern F1 steering wheel does, so the cost cutting excuse is a complete joke.

It s time for a change of management in f1.

Champ Car, IRL and most other open wheel racing for the last few decades have managed well with slicks and no tyre warmers, and surely the newer drivers coming up through the ranks should be used to driving like this?

F1 is finally trying things to put the responsibilty back on the driver rather than the car and they don't like it!

Errr the reason rally drivers don't go "ooo it's a bit dangerous" when it snows is that they have the correct tyres for the job. think they'd be a little irritated if you sent them out in slicks!

If no warmers is to work then bridgestone have got some hard graft ahead of them. all their current compounds are designed to work in a very narrow temp range. not from ambient to 100!

However i think it is a bad idea. does no one remember when tyre warmers were banned in the BTCC super tourer days and James thompson was very critical and then had a monster smash at dingle dell?

If the cars on out laps are significantly slower than the cars that are up to speed, then it is dangerous and there is nothing that driver skill can do to correct the difference. They would have to break the laws of physics. I agree with making the cars manual so it is harder for the drivers, but that is a level playing field. Some drivers on hot tyres and some on cold is not, in my mind it is dangerous, assuming the gap is as much as 10s as stated. How much do tyre warmers cost anyway, 4 for a pound?

john, and also jason. there is no proof at present that cold tyres are 10 secs slower. however this still returns to the fact that drivers on cold tyres will have to cope with this as well as those catching up with them. this will ensure that there is now some passing. tyre warmers are completely unwarranted. they do nothing for the development of road cars, which is one of the primary aims of Formula 1 As other posters have said, stop the moaning and get on with the job. No other formula needs these!!!!maybe those who are complaining are actually those who will not be able to cope with cold tyres AND loss of traction controlif you cant stand the heat,get out of the kitchen

Champ Car has bridgestone slicks with no tire warmers, but I don't hear them complaining?
Maybe Bordeaux can teach them thing or two...

don't all the teams already OWN tyre warmers ? so unless they have to replace the warmers after every race ( unlikely ) the expense has already been made and the warmers would only require replacement/expense when they actually break down!! Hardly big inroads into cost-cutting measures methinks

Solution is simple : ban fuel/tires stops, and there will not be any difference between warm and cold tires... Good old F1 back to its interesting times : all drivers have a full load of petrol, 4 tires supposed to last for the entire race, and the one who finishes first has won.

End of the races spoiled by a bad wheel nut, end of the overtakings in the pits, end of the stupid difference between cars due to their fuel load, end of all what makes F1 so boring nowadays!

Reduce downforce to increase the braking zones and decrease the aero perturbations for the cars following closely others, so overtaking maneuvers will be easier, and you get a proper show !

rich, if F1 is about development for road cars, then why is motormanagement limited? Why is traction control banned? Why is ABS banned? Why is engine development frozen? These are all area's that have a lot of development going on for normal cars, which should be done on F1.

Like someone else said, F1 is the pinnacle of motorsports and development. If it is too expensive, you don't belong in there. All the measures are taken to make the 'sport' more interesting for spectators, and while doing so, you are reducing the sport to a show. That is all fine and dandy, but stop calling it sport if you want that.

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F1 should be about who can build the fastest car, and which driver is brave enough to use that car to go quickest around the track. That is the sport. F1 should have unlimited development to keep F1 what it was and should be.

Richard, using your logic F1 cars should be stripped down to a seat, 4 wheels and and basic driving controls.

F1 is considered the peak of motorsport - the best drivers with the best possible equipment. There does need to be a balance between technology and driver input, however, take the tech out of F1 and it stops being F1. F1 is a PROTOTYPE series. They are not road cars; they are designed to be at the very cutting edge.

If the primary aim was to develop road cars, they'd be using road tyres, ABS brakes etc. GP2 is designed to sort out the drivers and be a relatively cheap series to compete in. F1 is where all the stops (technological included) come out.

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F1 should be about who can build the fastest car, and which driver is brave enough to use it to go fastest around a track. F1 should have unlimited development to keep F1 what it used to be and what it should be!

If you want to know what driving was all about, check this:
"www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZp0-ifEdJQ"
And be sure to watch closely the images of the real Nurburgring...

john and tm. if Formula 1 has nothing to do with developement of road cars, why would ferrari, merc, bmw,renault, toyota, honda be involved. they would just sell engines to teams as in the old cosworth days. further, when was the last time you saw tyrewarmers on a road car. they are irrelevant to any form of motor sport. traction control etc was removed due to the robotisation of the cars. paddle shifts are an example of formula 1 devs being brought to road cars. if not developed for race cars, they would never have been considered for road cars.

Richard, do not confuse development with marketing. Yes, if any particular technology is adaptable to road going cars they do so. However, don't think for a second that they would hesitate to put tech on their F1 cars that has NOTHING to do with road cars. Why? Because winning the WC will tremendously boost their sales or brand value so there is a net gain.

Don't get me wrong; it's great that paddle shifts and the like are making their way to road cars. However, the reason F1 exists is to pit the BEST POSSIBLE machines with the best possible drivers against each other, no more no less.