Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen said on Thursday that he was dissatisfied with Pirelli’s explanation for the high-speed tire blowout that cost him victory in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Red Bull’s Verstappen suffered a left rear retirement on the straight when he was in the lead in Baku towards the end of the race on June 6th.
Aston Martin’s Canadian Lance Stroll had previously crashed with a similar bug.
Sole supplier Pirelli ruled out production or quality defects on Tuesday and accepted that the teams had adhered to the prescribed parameters when fitting the tires.
It turned out that the way the tires were operated at the time had contributed to the incidents.
When asked at the French Grand Prix whether he was satisfied with Pirelli’s explanation, the 23-year-old Dutchman replied: “Not personally.
“I think the team did everything the way it should have done, they followed all of the tire pressure guidelines at the start.
“Of course we will increase the pressure here this weekend. 100% sure we will. It probably has something to do with what happened in Baku, but it would also be nice to know if it is related to the tire pressure.” Just speak out.
“That would be a bit easier to understand than the explanation we have received so far.”
Pirelli had stated in their statement that the cause was “a circumferential break on the inner sidewall, which may be related to the running conditions of the tire”.
Verstappen said he was lucky enough to survive the crash unharmed.
“Actually, I was very lucky to hit the wall on the right and not the left. I think if I had gone left it would have had a really big impact,” he said.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton said safety is the priority and Pirelli and the ruling FIA need to do a better job of controlling tire pressures and temperatures during the race as well as before.
“If there is a mistake, there is always pressure, that says something,” said the Mercedes driver. “The tires often don’t run at the required pressure.
“I think they did a great job with the tires this year, they are more robust than before.
“In this particular case, I don’t think Pirelli is to blame.”
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