Trulli eager for reintroduction of slicks

Bridgestone has confirmed that it will supply teams with slicks at next week's Jerez test. The Japanese manufacturer wants to gather data in preparation for a potential return to slick tyres from the 2009 season.

No firm decision has yet been taken about future tyre regulations, but Trulli says he would strongly favour a switch back to slicks.

"I had the fortune to use slick tyres in my first year in F1, and I would be very happy if they would come back," the Toyota driver told Autosprint.

"I've never liked the current grooved tyres, for the particular driving style they impose on the driver and for their behaviour during a race.

"When the tyres grain, and this happens not through a driving mistake but for an intrinsic characteristic of the tyre, there's nothing you can do: you can only wait for it to go away and hope it will within a few laps.

"When it happens you need to drive in an unnatural way, and I think that several drivers, who have found the way to perform at their best with these tyres, would look a lot worse with a return to slicks."

F1 is the only major racing series to use grooved tyres as standard, and Trulli believes it would be better to bring the category into line with the rest of motorsport.

"Grooved tyres require a completely different driving style from that of any other racing car. It's not a problem in F1's technical characteristics, it's a problem in the tyre," he said.

"After a few laps the behaviour of a new tyre changes radically. By having less of a contact patch, the part in contact overheats more easily, understeer increases dramatically and graining happens.

"This forces the driver into a much more nervous driving style, full of steering corrections. After about ten laps, when graining goes away, things get back to normal. Who has a cleaner, more precise driving style, has difficulty adapting to grooved tyres."

He also reckons that returning to slicks would improve the quality of the racing.

"If there's little overtaking in F1, a lot of that has to blamed on the tyres," said Trulli.

"If they'd also ban refuelling then it would be even better, because managing a car with 200 kilos of fuel on board under braking would be a great way to sort out the finer drivers from the rest.

"Probably the elimination of traction control has increased the problems and the wearing of the current tyres, but it would be nice if the slicks would come back. Can't we do it earlier than 2009?"