Fernando Alonso is F1′s ‘driver of the decade’, according to Pedro de la Rosa.
The HRT driver said that, in his opinion, his Spanish countryman has been even better in F1′s modern history than Michael Schumacher, who won every world championship between 2000 and 2004.

Alonso, now at Ferrari, won his titles with Renault in 2005 and 2006.

De la Rosa told Mundo Deportivo: “I think Fernando was the best of the decade, over Michael.

“Why? Because no matter what the rules, he was always on top; with grooved tyres, with slicks, with blown diffusers, with double diffusers, with Pirelli, Bridgestone, Michelin …

“If you look at it, he is the most complete.”

As for the 2012 contest, however, de la Rosa has another favourite. Asked to pick this season’s champion, he hesitated before answering: “I think (Lewis) Hamilton.”

Formula one drivers are worried Korea could this weekend host some of the worst tyre degradation of the season.
“We will definitely stop more than twice (in the race),” McLaren’s Jenson Button is quoted by Auto Motor und Sport.

Pirelli’s decision to bring its softest tyres to Korea, a rarely-used circuit whose surface was visibly dirty on Thursday and then watered by Friday morning’s rain, has raised eyebrows within the paddock.

“It will be interesting to see how they work,” said McLaren test driver Pedro de la Rosa, who recalled 2010 when even the Bridgestone tyres grained.

Added Button: “Some (drivers) may need to stop five times and then if something goes wrong, your supply of tyres runs out.”

“We will see high levels of tyre degradation,” Ferrari’s Felipe Massa is quoted by La Repubblica. “It will be a tough race with the soft and super soft tyres, not only for us but for everyone.”

Sebastian Vettel said the situation “will be worsened” further with the Friday rain. Rubens Barrichello said F1 learned last year that rain in Korea leads to mud sliding onto the track.

“All the preparation for the race may have to take place on Saturday morning,” predicted McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh.

Mark Webber’s struggles in 2011 are about Pirelli tyres but also his teammate Sebastian Vettel.
That is the claim of Red Bull driver manager Helmut Marko, when asked about the difficult season suffered by the team’s Australian driver in 2011.

Last year Webber finished just a handful of points behind Vettel’s championship win, but in 2011 he has failed to win a single race compared with his soon-to-be double world champion teammate’s nine so far.

“Webber is suffering with the successes of Vettel,” Marko told Austrian television Servus TV this week.

“But if they did not have each other then neither would be where they are now, as they push each other to excel. This is also the principle of our team.”

Another factor has been the switch from Bridgestone to Pirelli tyres, as Vettel “has been better to adapt” according to Marko.

It has been suggested that Webber is unhappy with the inconsistency of the Pirellis off the grid, which has contributed to his run of poor starts.

“Mark has had some problems this year with the starts, which is a very complex process. But he is aware of it and he is working on it with his engineers and in the simulator,” said team boss Christian Horner.

Both Horner and Marko tipped him to solve the problem in the next couple of races, but according to Yahoo Singapore, Webber thinks he lost his only chance of becoming world champion last year.

“Yes of course, I do think that last year was my last chance at being world champion,” he is quoted as saying.

“To win the championship you need 100 per cent from the team. I think it’s difficult for the team to give 100pc to both drivers as we are both demanding.

“Looking at the start we actually got (in 2011), it’s clear where the support needs to go and I respect that in some way,” added Webber.

Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull could be set to reign over a new era of dominance in formula one.
That is the view of former grand prix winner and paddock personality Gerhard Berger, a countryman and close friend of Red Bull mogul Dietrich Mateschitz.

He is also the former team co-owner at German Vettel’s first team Toro Rosso.

“If he keeps it up like this and Adrian Newey keeps on building such brilliant cars, then it pushes slowly into dimensions that have only been seen with Schumacher and Ferrari,” Berger told Die Welt newspaper.

But another Austrian, triple world champion Niki Lauda, is not so sure Schumacher’s seven world titles will be troubled. “What happened with Michael will probably remain out of reach for Sebastian,” he insisted.

Lauda referred to Schumacher’s era of success that featured a Ferrari budget approaching EUR 400 million a season, unrestricted testing and a works-style relationship with tyre supplier Bridgestone.

“For them it was the perfect system,” he said.

According to Pirelli’s Paul Hembery, however, it is the little things making the difference for Vettel, who he said was the only F1 racer in 2011 to make a surprise visit to the new tyre supplier’s factory.

Hembery told Spain’s Marca newspaper that the visit was in the dead of the Christmas period.

“He wanted to know what was going on, to see the labs, meet the staff, think about the sporting side and strategies, compounds, everything.

“I can’t say what advantage that gives you but if that’s what you do with each aspect of the car then you can understand the results,” he said.

There is a secret to McLaren’s recent success, according to the German trade magazine Auto Motor und Sport.

With Lewis Hamilton and then Jenson Button winning the most recent German and Hungarian grands prix, the report said a big reason for the erosion of Red Bull’s dominance is a Japanese engineer.

Hiroshi Imai, who until 2009 was former F1 supplier Bridgestone’s chief engineer, is now working at McLaren on unlocking the secrets of the heavily-degrading Pirellis.

“He seems to have made a breakthrough,” said Auto Motor und Sport, revealing that McLaren has worked to better cool the brakes so that the heat is not transferred to the tyres.

Mark Webber took a big step towards closing the gap with his teammate Sebastian Vettel at Valencia last weekend.
That is the view of Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who in the past days has admitted it is “very, very likely” Australian Webber, 34, will be offered a new contract for the 2012 season.

The reigning champions have reportedly toyed with the idea of signing Lewis Hamilton or perhaps Nico Rosberg but have instead decided to stick with Webber for at least another year.

Webber has struggled to match runaway championship leader Vettel’s pace in the dominant RB7 so far this season but at Valencia qualified on the front row and was only narrowly beaten to second place by Fernando Alonso.

“I think it was the closest I have been (to Vettel) for a while,” admitted the driver. “I think it’s getting better.”

Webber has said he has struggled to adjust following the departure of long-time tyre supplier Bridgestone.

“It was the best race of the season from Mark in terms of the performance from the tyres,” Horner, referring to Webber’s podium at Valencia, is quoted by France’s L’Equipe.

“He has never been this close to Seb (in 2011) and he controlled it well. I hope he will stay on his (Vettel’s) heels because it’s no secret that he has had problems with the tyres this year.

“Now he understands them better,” revealed Horner. “Just look at the difference in this race; for 90 per cent he was 4-5 seconds from Seb. I hope this result gives him great confidence for the future.”

Webber won last year’s British grand prix at Silverstone, famously scowling on the radio afterwards that it was “Not bad for a no.2 driver”.

“The characteristics of the (Silverstone) circuit have suited us well in past seasons. The test will remain if it’s the same this time around,” he said on Thursday, no doubt referring to the FIA’s blown exhaust clampdown.

Pirelli has many ideas about how to maximise its involvement in F1 as the sport’s official tyre supplier.
That is the claim of the Italian marque’s British motor sport director Paul Hembery, who spoke to Auto Motor und Sport at Valencia, the eighth race since Pirelli took over from the now departed Bridgestone.

He said the first idea is about the supply of wet-weather tyres.

“If the first two practice sessions are wet, then we need an additional set of intermediates for the rest of the weekend. We have agreed that this should come in to the regulations for next year,” said Hembery.

As for the basic construction and compounds, he said Pirelli is fairly happy even though the target is “two to three pitstops per car” rather than four as has been seen on occasion this season.

“We wanted to wait for the mid season. After Silverstone we will get together and show the teams a few things,” he said.

Hembery said the plan is then to make significantly faster tyres in 2013.

“The aerodynamics will be reduced so we want to give the teams a little boost on the laptime,” he revealed.

“There are many things. Maybe we will increase the number of different tyres; maybe we’ll bring three compounds to a race, maybe with a total of six to choose from.

“I don’t know yet. There are lots of ideas,” said Hembery.

Another idea is for a “super sticky” qualifying tyre that lasts for only one lap.

“In the end for something like that the decision is with the teams. They might say no,” he explained.

Mark Webber has singled out tyres as the crucial difference between his stellar 2010 season and a drop of performance so far this year.
The Australian, famous in the paddock for refusing to roll out “a shopping list of excuses”, was speaking from the St Lawrence river as he did a day of kayaking ahead of the Montreal weekend.

“You’ll never find me fishing. I need to push myself,” said the 34-year-old.

He has sat in the sister Red Bull in 2011 while his teammate and reigning champion Sebastian Vettel won 5 of the 6 races so far.

“I hope I can continue my momentum of encouraging results and I hope to get my first win soon,” he told rds.ca, “because I was winning quite often last year.”

Once again explaining his reluctance to make excuses, Webber pointed to the tyres as a factor in 2011.

“They are very different and the drivers are very sensitive to that (change),” he said, referring to the switch from Bridgestone to Pirelli.

“It’s like a golfer or a tennis player changing his equipment. When you’re at this level and trying to gain an edge with tiny details, the small changes can make big differences.

“But it’s up to the drivers to adapt,” added Webber.

By the same media outlet, Vettel on Wednesday was asked what has made the difference for him in 2011.

“There is not one ingredient which, alone, turns the tide,” the German insisted. “It is the details, the little things, that all come together to make a big difference.”

Fernando Alonso does not think his former team McLaren is set to endure a season in the midfield in 2011.

When asked by El Pais newspaper about the British squad’s apparently uncompetitive MP4-26 car, the Ferrari driver answered: “They’re better than they look.

“Winter testing doesn’t explain anything. They say themselves that they are expecting a little more, so perhaps they will be at a similar level to the best (in Australia) and then go on ahead.

“When we get there, we’ll see. McLaren are not going to be fighting for tenth place, but rather (for) the podium,” added Alonso.

Meanwhile, when asked about F1 drivers’ complaints about the extreme degradation of the Pirelli tyres, Alonso said his main concern is the effect on braking.

“Before (with Bridgestone), you would come to the end of the straight and step on the brake with all your strength. Now if you do that, you block the wheels, especially the rears.

“The traction is also worse. Before you would step on the accelerator quickly out of a corner, but now it’s more measured. You have to be much more sensitive,” he explained.

The Italian marque’s F1 boss Paul Hembery has defended Pirelli after the first test of the 2011 pre-season at Valencia.

Several drivers have complained about the consistency but particularly the poor durability of the tyres supplied to teams at the first of four tests before the 2011 season opener.

Hembery said as the test began that the 2011 compounds are now in a “pretty definitive” specification for the first races.

But the subsequent feedback, at best, was mixed.

“Of the compounds available, some were more consistent than others,” Michael Schumacher told Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

“I had some awkward moments on the track when I was on tyres that I had not been on for long. It was like driving on ice,” admitted the seven time world champion.

Schumacher, who struggled with departed Bridgestone’s tyres last year, hopes Pirelli is still willing to make changes.

“I think they are still in the testing phase and that they will deal with the situation well,” he said.

Hembery responded to the driver feedback of this week by suggesting that the ambient conditions at Valencia were not ideal.

“The tyres don’t like it too cold,” he is quoted by Turun Sanomat, confirming that Pirelli will make some tweaks ahead of the next tests.

“Another thing we have to remember that all tyres wear out, which is something some people seem to have forgotten in the last few days,” he insisted.

Yet another consideration is that, in the interests of the spectacle, Pirelli was specifically asked by Bernie Ecclestone to produce aggressive tyres for 2011 that force multiple pitstops.

“Some teams here have had a new car, some last year’s car. It is very early to draw conclusions,” Hembery said.

He added: “You can’t make decisions based on one set of comments or data or because someone wants something different, you need to have a general understanding.”

With Michael Schumacher’s difficult comeback season behind him, Alain Prost does not expect the seven time world champion to be back to full speed in 2011.
Frenchman Prost, who is one of F1′s most successful-ever drivers behind 42-year-old Schumacher, said last year that the German targeting the title in his second career was “unrealistic”.

Prost, 55, said Schumacher used Bridgestone’s tyres as an “excuse” for his lack of pace, with “age” being the main factor.

Now, in a new interview with the Swiss newspaper Le Matin Dimanche, Prost said: “His decision to come back was personal and I respect it.

“I think it’s impossible, at his age, to return to where he was in the past, but I hope he proves me wrong.”

Prost said he does not miss racing in F1 because returning is out of the question, but admitted he would “like to do some laps in a modern car”.

“But only to assess the developments in technology, which has always fascinated me,” he explained.

Pirelli will use a colourful method to visibly differentiate its tyre compounds at grands prix this year.
A few years ago, the FIA said sole supplier Bridgestone must differentiate the appearance of the ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ options at races.

With the grooved tyres, the Japanese marque painted a line in a middle groove of the soft options, and when slicks returned in 2009 the soft Bridgestones featured a green circle on the sidewall.

According to Italian sources, F1′s new sole supplier Pirelli has come up with a different approach to conform with the same rule in 2011.

A report in the Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat claims that each compound with have the words ‘Pirelli P Zero’ painted in different colours on the sidewall.

The super-soft wording will reportedly be in red, the soft will be in white, the medium in blue and the hard in yellow.

Meanwhile, the sidewall colourings of the full wet tyre will be yellow, and the intermediates red.

After four floodlit nights in Abu Dhabi that concluded this week, Pirelli said it is now ready for the forthcoming group tests and the season.

But the marque’s research and development boss Maurizio Boiocci admitted that one unknown factor is how the tyres will be affected by the additional speed delivered by KERS and adjustable rear wings.

“If the speed came on gradually, for sure there would be no problems,” he said. “But it remains to be seen what happens when all the power comes on suddenly.”

Pirelli test driver Pedro de la Rosa told Spain’s Marca newspaper that he thinks Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton will adapt best to the new tyres in 2011.

“Changes like this always benefit the best ones, and the best ones are Hamilton and Alonso,” he said.

“But I don’t think the changing of tyres brands will be a big problem for anyone.”

Meanwhile, it has emerged that – so that no drivers or teams are favoured – the FIA will distribute Pirelli’s tyres to the teams after randomly shuffling the code numbers at grands prix.

Pirelli’s 2011 tyres are “very different” to the Bridgestones of last year and should contribute to “more interesting” races.
That is the view of Pedro de la Rosa, the Italian marque’s test driver who this week wound up Pirelli’s private tyre development programme after four days in Abu Dhabi.

Speaking to Barcelona radio Rac1, the Spaniard confirmed reports that the Pirellis have been designed to improve F1′s show and are “very different” to departed Bridgestone’s.

“The races will be more interesting, because they have designed a tyre for the show — especially the super soft which is very fast but also has a very big degradation,” he said.

De la Rosa added that he thinks the outcomes of the races will be “more open” with each driver making “2 or 3 stops per grand prix” in 2011.

But he played down speculation that the new tyres, combined with adjustable rear wings and the return of KERS, will mean that qualifying is far less important than before.

“Qualifying will always be 70 per cent of the outcome of the race,” said de la Rosa.

“Of course, it is true that the difference between the first and the second choice of compounds is very large.

“So those who start further back than eleventh will have a chance to fight for points because the harder tyre will last much longer than the soft. But that’s only speculation,” he warned.

Pirelli has followed through with its pledge to produce tyres that require drivers to make multiple pitstops in 2011.
Having replaced long-time supplier Bridgestone, incoming sole tyre marque Pirelli announced last year it wanted to contribute to the ‘show’ by designing aggressive compounds.

According to a report in Autosprint, the Italian marque’s 2011 generation of tyres is designed to require two or three pitstops per driver per race.

The report said the request for aggressive tyres was made by FOTA’s technical division, with the harder compounds designed to last only 30 laps on average.

Pirelli’s 2009 Toyota test mule is back in action in Pedro de la Rosa’s hands this week in Abu Dhabi, where the action kicked off under lights on Monday on an artificially-watered track.

It is reportedly during this final private session that Pirelli will finalise its compound selections for 2011, even though the teams may ask for additional changes after the forthcoming group tests in February.

“These tests will provide us with useful information to finalise our tyre development process for formula one,” confirmed Pirelli’s F1 boss Paul Hembery at Yas Marina.

It is too early to say whether F1′s switch from Bridgestone to Pirelli will make Michael Schumacher more competitive in 2011.
That is the admission of Ross Brawn, the seven time world champion’s Mercedes GP team boss who said the great German had an “encouraging” finish to his F1 comeback in 2010.

The great German celebrated his 42nd birthday this week, but “I didn’t have to think about a present because I already know what he wants — a competitive car”, smiled Brawn.

“I am sure he will have a better time this season,” the Briton told Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport.

It has been suggested that last year’s tyres did not suit Schumacher and that the switch to Pirelli will work in his favour.

“It’s a little premature to say that,” insisted Brawn.

“During the tests in Abu Dhabi we didn’t see any big differences in performance compared with Bridgestone.

“But it is clear that in changing the supplier, the car will have to be different and there may be a lot of changes during the winter tests,” he added.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo poked fun at Schumacher’s comeback performance by suggesting it was the former Ferrari champion’s “twin” at the wheel of the silver Mercedes in 2010.

“Today I would have to say that Michael is definitely not happy with the performance of his twin,” the Italian told the German magazine Sport Bild.

“Should Ferrari have a third car, I would always give it to the old Michael Schumacher, but not to his twin,” added Montezemolo.