Pirelli F1 tyre tweaks should be tested first, argues Force India

Pirelli is currently trying to reach agreement with teams over tweaks to its rear tyres to try to prevent a repeat of recent delaminations.

Its preferred solution is to change the steel belt in the rear tyre for the Kevlar version that was used until the end of last year.

That tweak is likely to reduce the operating temperature of the rear tyre, which could help teams like Mercedes that have struggled with overheating.

The potential for a shake-up in the competitive order has left teams like Lotus and Ferrari nervous about agreeing to any changes - and Force India is going further and pushing for there to be no tweak at all.

With only a fortnight to go until the next race in Montreal, where Pirelli plans to introduce the new rear, Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley thinks the final call should wait until after the Canadian GP.

"My view would be that we run with what we have, the 2013 tyres, and if Pirelli can get a set of test tyres that they want to look at in the meantime, then we should test them and evaluate them," Fernley told AUTOSPORT.

CHANGES 'ABOUT PIRELLI IMAGE'

Fernley said he understood Pirelli's desire to avoid further delaminations, but equally said it would be unfair to force through tweaks on safety grounds.

"It is more to do with making sure the image of Pirelli is protected - quite rightly going forward - because they don't want to see delaminating tyres," he said. "It is not a safety issue."

There have been suggestions that Force India could try to veto any tyre changes that it believes could hamper its performance, but Fernley made it clear his outfit was open-minded about the situation.

"I don't think anything is running counter procedure, it is going through the correct process," he said.