How can the Formula 1 season become more exciting again? Ex-pilot David Coulthard has a suggestion.
The 2023 Formula 1 season was one of Red Bull’s dominance. Max Verstappen won 19 of the 22 races of the season, and only one Grand Prix (Carlos Sainz for Ferrari) did not go to the Red Bulls.
If former racing driver David Coulthard has his way, then going through the tire rules will lead to a closer fight in the Formula 1 field.
Formula 1: Coulthard advocates a tire duel
“I don’t think there is a desire for a tire competition at the moment, but I think it would be better,” said the 246-time GP participant in the “Formula for Success” podcast.
Coulthard continued: “Sometimes it would be Pirelli that would have the right tire for the track and sometimes, let’s say Bridgestone would have the right tire. You would of course have this competitive shift from track to track based on the only thing that is the ground touched, namely the tire,” said the Scot, who drove for Red Bull from 2005 to 2008.
Since 2011 only Pirelli has been in Formula 1
The last time there was a big tire duel in Formula 1 was in 2006, when the two manufacturers Michelin and Bridgestone supplied the tires. Since 2007 there has only been one tire manufacturer for the premier motorsport class. First Bridgestone from 2007 and then Pirelli since 2011. The contract between Formula 1 and Pirelli as exclusive tire supplier runs until 2027.
Former team owner Eddie Jordan doesn’t see this as a solution. He fears that the manufacturers will only work with the teams that have a chance of winning the title.
“I don’t know how you could get the competition there without the free fall of big money,” Jordan said on the same podcast as Coulthard.
To date, there have been nine tire manufacturers in the history of Formula 1: Pirelli, Goodyear, Bridgestone, Michelin, Firestone, Dunlop, Engelbert, Avon and Continental.