Pirelli, the tire supplier of the World Rally Championship, has been a hot topic on the first good day of the World Rally Championship in Portugal.
Sebastien Ogier was not happy with Pirelli’s tires. AOP
In the morning’s special stages, Pirelli’s tires did their job, but during the afternoon’s run, the tires broke from one, if not another, driver.
The worst fate befell Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier, who had to miss an afternoon run due to two tire failures. Ogier commented on Pirelli’s tires after his first puncture.
– The conditions are harsh and below are the Pirelli. Awesome combination, Ogier stated sarcastically at the finish of the sixth special stage.
Ogier wasn’t the only one whose tires couldn’t last. Hyundai driver Ott Tänak and M-Sport Ford’s Craig Breen, Gus Greensmith and Adrien Fourmaux.
The durability of the tires has spoken since the Croatian asphalt race in April. The boss in charge of Pirelli’s rally operations Terenzio Testoni gave a defense to Iltalehti on Friday afternoon in Portugal.
– In the morning everything was fine, but in the afternoon the conditions have been different. Some of the drivers had made the same tire choices as in the morning. I was surprised that the conditions were so harsh, Testoni began.
– Right now it’s hard to say what exactly happened, because the cars have to be brought here for service first. But I can say that the conditions are harsh. One of the drivers said the conditions are as harsh as in Turkey, the Italian boss added.
The driver in question was Kalle Rovanperä, the leader of the World Championships, who compared the conditions of the sixth special stage in Portugal to the recent World Championships in Turkey.
– Pirelli was not involved in Turkey, but there were several flat tires there as well. Like I said, the conditions are harsh, Testoni underlined.
In Turkey, a tough World Gravel Rally was held around Marmaris in 2018–2020. At the time, Michelin was the tire supplier for the WRC teams.
According to Teston, Pirelli has asked the teams in the World Rally Championship about how they think the tires should be developed. However, there is no need to wait for big changes in the short term.
– According to the rules, we can only use one Joker during a season, Testoni emphasized.
Toyota’s Elfyn Evans and Kalle Rovanperä will hold a double lead for their team in Portugal ahead of Friday night’s special stage. Both Toyota drivers avoided tire crashes in the afternoon woods.