Why F1's 'misleading' tyre graphic is better than you think

As the majority of people are seemingly hard-wired to dislike change, it was little wonder that the unexpected arrival of a new Formula 1 TV overlay graphic a few races ago raised so many eyebrows.

The tyre data graphic - which initially appeared at the Japanese Grand Prix as a 'tyre condition' insight with percentage figures for all four corners of the car - left fans, teams and even Pirelli (whose data had not been used to come up with the figures) confused by its inclusion.

It was unclear to fans what the figures shown on-screen represented, with many suspecting that it was related to tyre wear. Even Pirelli's head of car racing Mario Isola said afterwards it was 'misleading' for those watching at home.

That immediate backlash wrongly prompted many to conclude that F1 had done nothing more than throw some figures together to make a rough guess of the tyres' actual condition, and in doing so had created an inaccurate representation of what was going on in the race.

But once Pirelli had time to sit down and discuss matters with F1, it became clear that the real problem with the graphic was not to do with the data used. Instead, the issue was rooted in its presentation and understanding.

For the following race in Mexico, the graphic was rebranded from 'tyre condition' to 'tyre performance' to try to better explain what it represented. It was nothing to do with wear, instead it was about how the tyre's potential stacked up.

Though the renaming was a step in the right direction, even in the last race in America the graphic prompted a host of social media scepticism.

But rather than ditch the concept, Pirelli and F1 are working hard on trying to make it even better.

As Isola explains: "It is clear that the target is to give something interesting and understandable for spectators because this is a difficult part of the analysis.

"We are still talking to F1 and I believe we are going in the right direction. If you see in Mexico, we were talking about tyre performance not tyre wear, as they have made some analysis to identify the performance life of the tyre, not the wear life of the tyre.

"The data and the system that is behind it, the way of calculating it, is a good system; it is at the level of what teams have or even better" Mario Isola

"That was the first clarification and is a bit more clear. Now the next step is to make it even more understandable for spectators."

The biggest issue most have with the graphic is that the vague parameter of "tyre performance" as a percentage means very little.

For example, does a tyre at 50% performance deliver a lap time 50% slower than when the tyres are at 100%? What is the difference between a hard at 80% and a soft at 85%? Clarity over what the numbers shown on-screen actually represent is somewhat lacking.

Perhaps the percentage figures can be removed and replaced with colour-coded bars so it's not presented as something too specific. By doing that, the graphic could instead be more of a guide to help a viewer's understanding - rather than aiming to provide a definite answer about the level of performance left in the tyre.

Alternatively, the graphic could do with a lashing of extra insight added to it - perhaps with a line trend graph that shows how the tyre performance has fallen over the previous laps. That would bring some much needed context to the percentage figures already provided.

The latter suggestion in particular will then offer a clearer indication of the condition a driver's tyres are in. At a glance, the spectator can spot the difference between a driver managing to keep the life in their tyres, and able to continue longer on the same set, and a driver fighting a losing battle who will have to stop for fresh rubber.

It could be argued that F1 is trying to overcomplicate things, and is overstretching itself in an endeavour to nail the tyre performance down to a percentage. In theory, a simple explanation of tyre age would suffice in this situation.

But Isola does not agree on this point, because he thinks a tyre life indicator could actually provide greater confusion.

As he points out, a driver who had looked after their tyres well for 20 laps could be in better shape than a rival who had gone flat out and taken the best from their rubber after 10 laps.

"If you just show the tyre age, the number of laps, immediately your mind connects the number of laps to the tyre wear, not to the performance life," he said.

This is why aiming for a more detailed explanation of the state of the tyres is right, and it's just a question of how it gets presented.

One myth that can be quickly dispelled about the data is the suggestion that it is unreliable, and cannot be trusted because it doesn't come from Pirelli. In reality, F1 has gone to great lengths to come up with a system that can offer a proper insight into the state of a tyre.

A host of parameters have been used: including car telemetry, cornering forces, sector timing information, tyre life, weather and marshalling information, all to help power its calculation to create an algorithm that develops the percentage figures.

It was tested for several months to check the data was robust and in the end unleashed as a soft launch in Japan.

"The data and the system that is behind it, the way of calculating it, is a good system," adds Isola. "It is at the level of what teams have or even better, and is a really good system."

The tyre graphic was tested for several months to check the data was robust, and unleashed as a soft launch in Japan

The graphic really comes into its own when it's used as a comparison reference point. If it shows that the car ahead is on worse tyres than the one behind, it immediately suggests that some action is set to brew.

Isola says: "For me, it has to be always be presented in a way that when two cars are fighting, it makes the situation more readable for spectators.

"So if there is one car leading the race and they say 40% performance, as long as he can finish the race that is not really important.

"What is important is when there is somebody that is fighting for position, how many chances are for one and how many chances are for the other?"

While some may not like yet another graphic being thrown up on the screen, the tyre graphic certainly has its merits, and can potentially add a new layer of information if it is presented properly.

But the presentation is the key issue that F1 and Pirelli must now work on together, and the two must determine the future tweaks to hone it into a valuable tool for the spectator to understand what is going on in a race.

Isola adds: "The next step is to give to everybody, especially television commentators, a key to read the information.

"If we are talking about performance, you make an estimation based on the pace that the car had from the start of the race until that lap.

"But then it is up to the driver to maybe slow down a little bit or preserve a specific position.

"If the car is understeering they will be protecting a bit more the front tyres. If they are suffering with traction they will try to hold onto the rear tyres - and this is something that is in the hands of the driver and you cannot make a graph as you don't know what the driver is going to do.

"So we have to find a way to put it on TV in an easy way, understandable, and then the commentators and the people in general have the training in order to understand what is going on and explain which is the purpose and what is going to happen."

And therein lies the real challenge of the new graphic. In some ways F1 has done the easy bit with its hard work in pulling the data together to offer the extra insight.

Now the toughest task is coming up with a simple, digestible and readable way to convey all of that to the viewers.