Pirelli boss Mario Isola is unsure whether two-stop races would improve the quality of racing in Formula 1.
So far in 2023, Red Bull have dominated proceedings, with Max Verstappen holding a 53-point lead in the drivers’ championship over teammate Sergio Perez heading into the Canadian Grand Prix.
Both Perez and Verstappen‘s success have helped Red Bull gain a cushion of 135 points on Mercedes in the constructors’ championship.
The amount of racing and overtakes have divided fans and drivers this year after F1 introduced regulations at the start of 2022, which intended to create more wheel to wheel action.
Asked exclusively by Total-Motorsport.com whether multiple pit stops would improve the racing in F1, Isola answered: “That’s a difficult question.
“When we talk about strategies and consider the stop is not just defined by the characteristics of the tyre because you can have higher degradation.
“In 2017, with wider tires, we were conservative. So the range of compounds was harder, we decided to go softer the following year, and the only result was that team started to manage the tyres.Â
‘If we work with all other stakeholders to find a solution, to achieve the two stops, we just make tyres [with] higher degradation. The result is excessive tire management during the race.”
Pirelli on course to remain F1’s sole tyre supplier
Pirelli, who have been the official tyre supplier of F1 since 2011, look to stay in the paddock once its current deal ends in 2024.
Isola and Pirelli will find out their F1 fate before the action starts in Canada when the FIA announces whether the Milan-based company has been a successful bidder.
“The process is quite clear we made our bid, the first phase is the technical one,” explained Isola. “So we sent all the documentation to the FIA by the 15th of May, which was the deadline, and now we have to wait until the 15th of June.
“That is the deadline for the FIA to come back to us, and you are an approved bidder, and at that point, we started the commercial negotiations with the other approved bidders for the new contract.
“When they are planning to define it is still unclear because the deadlines are defined until mid of June for the technical phase, and then we will see.”
Where is the next F1 2023 race?
With the F1 circus finished in Spain, the next race is the 2023 Canadian Grand Prix which will be held at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal over the weekend of June 16-18.
