Norris: "Terrible" non-F1 standard tyres caused Melbourne restart chaos
McLaren’s Lando Norris has called out “terrible” Pirelli Formula 1 tyres that do not belong “at the top of motorsport” for the restart chaos in the 2023 Australian Grand Prix.
A second red flag induced by Kevin Magnussen clipping the wall enabled the field to switch to fresh soft tyres during the stoppage for a third standing start on lap 56 of 58.
But the Melbourne race was halted swiftly after the restart due to a chaotic Turn 1, where Fernando Alonso was spun by Carlos Sainz, the Alpine team-mates eliminated each other and Logan Sargeant hit Nyck de Vries.
Norris has called out the Pirelli tyres for their role in the incidents, saying that he “can’t describe how bad the grip is”.
The Briton, who eventually classified sixth, said of the stewards who called for red flags and standings starts over safety cars: “Nothing against them, but the people who make decisions don't know what's going on inside the car.
Insight: 10 things we learned from the 2023 Australian Grand Prix
“We have a soft [tyre] on that's 65 degrees [Centigrade] and I can't describe how little grip there is on track.
He continued: “It’s not a bad temperature. But the tyre doesn't work and on this surface with this tyre temperature, I can't describe how bad the grip is.
“That's why you see everyone going straight on in Turn 1 and locking up… it provides literally no grip, so you have to brake so early, which causes chaos and causes incidents.”
Norris then implied that the current specification 23-inch Pirellis (on 18-inch wheel rims) were not up to F1 standard, labelling the rubber “terrible”.
He said: “If the tyres felt like they gave us some grip, I think you'd be able to see a good race without chaos and some clumsiness and things like that. It's just difficult.
Lando Norris, McLaren, on the grid
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images
“I wouldn't say it's clumsy from everyone. It's just you're racing and there's no grip, as simple as that.
“We need a tyre that gives us some more grip and actually a tyre that feels like it should be on a Formula 1 car at the top of motorsport and at the moment, on a day like today, it feels pretty terrible.”
Last on the restart grid, Sargeant locked up into Turn 1 to send the Williams driver forcefully into the back of de Vries’. The AlphaTauri driver was spun around and Sargeant has so far avoided a penalty.
The American rookie has also placed blame on tyre temperatures. Explaining his shunt, he said: “When I hit the brake, nothing was up to temp: the tyres, brakes.
“I just touched the brakes and locked both fronts immediately.
“Apologies to Nyck. I hate to end the day like that.
“I have to look and see what happened, but it definitely felt strange because I felt like I had braked in a similar spot the previous two starts.”
Additional reporting by Adam Cooper
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