What's the scoop here, people?

Am I the only one that thinks Ferrari has someone rooting for them in the FIA camp? That's just how it sounds to me... I could be wrong...

I don't know the complete story: did they revise or change a tire width regulation that is now affecting Michelin's tires so that Michelin has to pump out a new set for the Italian GP? What gives?

I swear, we had a good looking championship going on here and then this suspicious (at least to me) thing pops up... I dunno, just makes me suspicious on motives behind the scenes.

Thoughts?

The Ferrari lovers blame Michelin for purposely "violating" the rules. Which means they got what was coming. Like no teams (including Ferrari) have ever taken advantage of loopholes. :rolleyes: Besides Michelin has allegedly been using this tyre format structure since '01. Ferrari most likely knew about it, but never bothered to complain cause they were winning. Tables have turned and Ferrari now does what they like to do best. Take advantage of the buddy system with Bernie and Max. Cause Bernie and Max are obviously, are a part of that group who feels Ferrari can do no wrong.

The question is was it fair for FIA to abruptly change the rules like that. This will be another nail for the manufacturers to put in the FIA coffin. Soon enough it'll be a lot easier for them to start a new series, cause FIA continually compromises the integrity of the sport.

I haven't seen anything on this yet... but it sounds like "second verse, same as the first"

bernie needs to get over himself already.

Ross, the hack, Brawn is at it again. Anything to win I suppose. Keep those nails coming Rossiboy.

Ferrari May Appeal Past Results
04/09/03
Fernando Alonso may have his Hungarian Grand Prix victory taken away from him, after Ferrari revealed they might take action against Michelin teams in light of the tread width saga.

Ferrari's Technical Director Ross Brawn confessed on Wednesday that it was in fact the Scuderia who had complained to the FIA about the width of the tread on their rivals' Michelin tyres. However, Brawn has now revealed that the Scuderia are also considering taking action if it is proven that Michelin's tyres were illegal.

That action would be to appeal the results of races that have already taken place, which may mean that Michelin runners would be disqualified and would lose the Championship points they had won.

"We're not sure that the matter is closed," Brawn told Autosport.

"Measurements were taken after the Hungarian race that clearly showed that there were tyres above the legal limit and we've got to see what happens because we're not happy with that situation."

He added: "We just want a fair playing field, and it was clearly not a fair playing field."

Ferrari driver Rubens Barrichello agrees with Brawn on this, and feels the rules are the rules and should not be bent.

"I don't know if the tyres are legal or not, it is up to the FIA to verify, but the rules must be the same for everyone," he told AFP.

So basically, they wait until it's far enough into the season where there is no way for any team to get enough points back to win anything. Gotta love the red cars.:rolleyes:

My thoughts:

Changing the rules interpretation with only 3 races left in such a closely contested season brings the sport, in general, and this season's eventual results, specifically, into disrepute. Wait until next season.

Michelin respond to FIA letter Date: 30 Aug 2003 Time: 07:23 GMT Poster: RedRuM Category: Formula 1

The FIA has written a letter to all teams this week claiming that it will change the way it measures tyres from the next grand prix onwards.

In the letter, the FIA explains that the previous tread width limit of 270mm for the front tyres will now be measured before and after the race, rather than before it, as it had done in the past.

Michelin has released the following statement about the desision.

"After the Hungarian GP, the FIA has decided a new interpretation of the sporting regulation concerning F1 tyres. This applies to the definition of the front tyres tread width, which was so far measured when new, according to article 77)c) of the Sporting Regulations. The FIA wants us now to consider the width of the front contact patch after the tyre has been used on track.

"We would like to point out a few facts.

"Our front tyre profile has been deemed 'to comply with the F1 Regulations' in writing by the FIA. The controls have been made on new tyres, which confirms the interpretation of article 77)c).

"The procedure to measure the width of a contact patch as required now is unknown at the moment, which prevents any further work. We can expect some difficulties in the definition since a tyre in its use can be in systematic contact with various 'objects', for example curbs, which, according to their profile and position, can touch up as far as the middle of the side walls.

"All Michelin's partners are concerned by this regulation change, as they all use the same front tyre profile

"We are fully open to discuss this regulation change wished by the FIA and help to define a measurement procedure which could be enforced in 2004. We feel it is of course not realistic to ask for it before the Italian F1 Grand Prix."

Whether Michelin tires had an advantage because the FIA only measured tires before the race is immaterial. Bridgestone had the same opportunity and operated under the same rules. It just so happens that Bridgestone's front tires are designed quite a bit narrower than the maximum 270mm to suit their primary customer, Ferrari.

Tires deform, especially given the stresses imposed at 180+mph with 1500lbs or more of aero downforce. It makes sense to enforce the tire rules by measuring the tires "new", as the FIA has done to this point, because that parallels the logic process of designing a tire to meet width regs when they are freshly manufactured, not after they are raced.

I can't imagine a tire company or tire engineer either designing to a "used" tread width or being constrained by a "used" width measurement. And in my opinion, kudos go to the person or persons creative enough to design a tire to "exploit" such an unexpected "loophole".

I don't fault Ferrari for raising a protest. Their tires measure quite a bit less less than 270mm before the race, but measuring after the race historically has not mattered. It's quite "convenient" that their tires still measure <270mm after the race but those of their rivals don't. :devillook

It's the FIA's responsibility to handle the situation properly, and I think changing the interpretation at this point is a poor decision.

Taken from the F1 section of itv's website, publishers of F1 Racing magazine (http://www.itv-f1.com/itv_team/itvteam_story/17600)

James Allen gave his verdict on the Michelin tyre controversy in Thursday's Financial Times. Below is a taste of what he had to say...

The heart of the problem, as so often in this technical sport, is in interpretation. The rules say that when new, the contact patch of the front tyre must be no more than 270mm.

Michelin took this to mean that if you could make the contact patch expand during racing, it would be legal. The advantage would be more grip in the corners and better stability under braking.

It is an old saw in F1 that a car designed well within the rules will be slow. It will always be beaten by one that is within a cigarette paper of illegality.

Like all the top teams, Ferrari pay vast sums for engineers to find loopholes in the rules. They have successfully done this many times in the past, but this time found themselves on the wrong side of one.

Ferrari, finding themselves being beaten to the point where Schumacher was lapped in Hungary, had to put a stop to it and went the political route.

The FIA upheld Ferrari's complaint. Henceforth they will measure tyres after the race, not before.

The governing body was effectively saying that Michelin had to come up with a new tyre for the closing stages of the championship. Within a week this was being track tested.

From Ferrari's point of view, ideally the new Michelin would not have been able to match the performance of the old tyre. The least that Ferrari could expect was that the Michelin teams would be distracted from their planned development programmes for several weeks.

Unfortunately for them, Ferrari are likely to find only their minimum expectations met when the cars hit the track tomorrow at Monza. And they may even be in for a surprise.

"Yes, it blew us off course. We've lost preparation and development time," says Sam Michael, Williams' senior engineer. "But the good news is that one of the new tyres we tested last week is better, faster and more consistent than the one we had before. We're confident we've got enough to compete at the front for the last three races and we're happy that the tyre we now have will comply with the new interpretation of the rule."

Pat Symonds, Renault's engineering director, is equally bullish. "We've lost a little bit of grip in the middle of the corner but the overall performance has improved with this new tyre," he says. "It has made the car faster in a straight line and easier to drive. It has been a distraction, but if Ferrari win on Sunday it will not be because Michelin took a step backwards in performance."

So although F1 came close to shooting itself in the foot again, this time it has managed to steer clear of another public relations disaster. In competitive terms little will have changed as a result of the most controversial incident so far this season.

From now on, the battle will be on the track rather than the political channels.