Pirelli blame debris for Briton's new tyre failure

BARCELONA (AFP) –

Force India’s Scottish driver Paul di Resta sits in the pits during the first practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona on May 10, 2013 ahead of the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix. Italian tyre suppliers Pirelli believe debris on the circuit caused a dramatic tyre failure for di Resta on Friday.

Italian tyre suppliers Pirelli believe that debris on the circuit caused the dramatic tyre failure suffered by Paul di Resta on Friday.

The left rear tyre of the Briton’s Force India car delaminated completely at high speed during the second practice session in a spectacular and frightening incident.

But, after an investigation, Pirelli believes that, contrary to early indications, the tyre failure was caused by a deep cut into the rubber and not by any other kind of problem.

In a comment to reporters at the Spanish Grand Prix on Saturday, Pirelli motorsport director Paul Hembery said they suspected that the tread of the tyre overheated, leading to it stripping off, because of the cut in the tyre.

Hembery said: “We have to think about what is needed now. We need to consider whether changing something could have an impact on the teams and whether or not we could have the necessary testing for the new products.

“When the tread comes off and exposes the belt underneath, it doesn’t look good. We need to see if something has to be changed to fix this.”

Mexican driver Sergio Perez of McLaren warned after Friday’s incident that many drivers were now concerned that sooner or later a tyre failure will lead to a major accident.