How the Japanese GP proved wrong the myth that flat-out, low-degradation races are better for F1

The Japanese Grand Prix cleared up a misconception. A prevailing theory among certain subsections of the Formula 1 viewership is this: if Pirelli could simply make more durable tyres, then surely the intensity of races would reach stratospheric levels across their run-times. No tyre management, no sipping at the medium compound's life like a hot, bitter espresso - just 20 drivers pushing each other until the chequered flag drops. 

The contrary view of this standpoint is that, if the grid is determined by speed over a qualifying lap, then surely 50-odd flat-out laps would largely preserve the order. One or two exceptions might apply owing to botched flying laps but, in reducing the impact of one of the greater variables - tyre degradation - the race loses a significant dimension.

Perhaps we needed an experiment to determine which standpoint was right.

With a new surface draped over the top of the Suzuka circuit, degradation was pretty much taken out of the equation - and thus, the experiment could begin. It reads like the methodology section of a PhD's published thesis: 'we set 20 drivers in an order determined by their speed in a previous session, gave them a track surface that did not degrade the tyres, mandated two tyre compounds of the three hardest grades of Pirellis available, and checked the results after 53 laps'. 

Net result? Continuing the experimental metaphor: few reactions, if any, were noted. There was ONE positional change in the top 10 between the start and the finish: Lewis Hamilton passed Isack Hadjar on lap six, and that was your lot; it was as if those in the points-paying positions were conducting a test day, and just happened to be sharing the same circuit - such was their lack of interaction with each other.

There was a moment where Hamilton started to reel in his Mercedes successor Andrea Kimi Antonelli, as a genuine rare tyre delta started to form - Antonelli's mediums were coming to the end of their life while Hamilton's hard boots were still in decent condition, but the Briton locked up while trying to force the issue at the chicane. At least he'd had a go - you'd have really needed to go all-in to make some kind of overtake stick at Suzuka.

Overtakes were rare in the Japanese GP and even the battle for the lead just involved the McLarens staying put behind Verstappen

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Pirelli probably blundered slightly, but not in the manner for which people usually give the Italian company grief; if anything, it was overly conservative with its tyre choices, and you'd probably bet that a set of the C1 hard tyre would've lasted the entire 53-lap duration were pitstops not mandatory. Imagine the uproar then; all 20 drivers doing an entire race on the same tyres, and returning to the pitlane at the close of the race in the same order. Heads would roll; all hail the mandatory stops.

Suzuka laid bare the danger of having tyres that can not only last all race, but can be pushed to the car's limit rather than their own. If qualifying already determines the order based on how fast a driver/car combination is, and the race is essentially just an extension of this rather than having different variables and parameters, the same results largely apply. 

Outside the top 10, the moves for position were largely dependent on minor variations of the same strategy - and the rewards were just as minor for doing so. Jack Doohan pitted earlier than most to trade his soft tyres for hards, and moved up from 19th to 15th. This was largely as a result of those who went long on their pit strategies - Esteban Ocon and Liam Lawson - losing time through taking their tyres too long into the race and losing track position through undercuts. But, even then, their pit strategies didn't really cost them very much either. 

Degradation races are a lot more fun. It asks more from the drivers beyond their usual trade of just going quickly, and brings others who might not be as velocitarily-gifted into the game with an aptitude to out-think their opponents

It might be unfashionable to say this, so buckle up: tyre management should be a virtue we celebrate. Having a delicate touch on the tyres is a skill that separates the great from the merely very good; knowing when to back off and when to attack rewards those who get the balance right. Races with no degradation have none of those variables. It doesn't stretch a driver's mental acuity, or a team's strategists, or anything beyond sheer brute force speed. This year's Japanese Grand Prix, as a race, lacked any of the nuance needed to make it the vaguest bit interesting. 

And there's no real jeopardy in 20 drivers going flat-out for a full grand prix distance. There's the chance that a couple of drivers might crash but, given the grip levels of the current cars, that's distinctly unlikely if the tyres are as predictable as they are durable. It's a bit like watching a boxing match if two heavyweights just punched each other for 10 minutes, not even bothering to throw up any blocks or attempts to detect whether their opponent is tiring. Or a football match where two teams pass the ball to the goalkeeper with the sole intent of hoofing it long to a six-foot-five centre-forward made of concrete and blubber, with no fizzles of skill or tactical wizardry. Even if it's just for show, the odd firecracker really adds some much-needed lustre to an otherwise prosaic sporting affair.

Anyway, degradation races are a lot more fun. It asks more from the drivers beyond their usual trade of just going quickly, and brings others who might not be as velocitarily-gifted into the game with an aptitude to out-think their opponents. Perception, however, is everything, and there are those who believe that races that contain tyre degradation as a variable is defined solely by the need to manage.

Superb tyre management has always been a trait of drivers with multiple championships

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That doesn't preclude a driver from attacking, but rather that anyone predisposed to caning it lap after lap might require an adjustment in their racing process. F1 does well when there's lots of variables; it doesn't when the one strategy option available is "push flat-out, pit on lap 21, push flat-out until the end". 

Only little tweaks would be needed to make things better next year. A shift to the C2-C3-C4 compounds might have livened things up; it may still have only been a one-stopper, but with the opportunity to build a tyre offset depending on the degradation of the medium compound. 

Actually mounting the pass would still be tough; Andrea Stella reckoned a 0.5s-plus delta per lap was needed to make an overtake work. Softer compounds allow that; for example, the lack of field spread on Sunday hurt the undercut strategies as traffic cost the frontrunners time. More field spread through degradation might have rather set the cat among the pigeons.

That said, not every race is going to be a classic. There's also an inescapable feeling that, the more the drivers enjoy a circuit, the less conducive it is to decent racing action. But that's a thought experiment for another day.

Different tyre degs at least offer another variable to F1 grands prix

Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images