Pirelli have raised concerns over the "high and pointed" kerbs at Turns 5 and 9 of the modified Yas Marina Circuit and are in talks with the FIA to avoid "unexpected" issues occurring. The venue has been redesigned since the 2020 event in a bid to improve overtaking opportunities, with five fewer corners and a more flowing layout - resulting in a lap time improvement of almost 15 seconds. However, after drivers sampled the array of changes during Friday's pair of practice sessions, Pirelli pointed out potential problem spots that they are keen to rectify for the remainder of the weekend.
Pirelli open talks with the FIA
It comes after several sudden tyre failures two races ago in Qatar, with Pirelli later suggesting that the nature of the kerbs at the Losail track played a role . Speaking after the first day of action in Abu Dhabi, Pirelli F1 boss Mario Isola commented: "The track is obviously faster than last year, putting more energy through the tyres. "Of some concern here are the kerbs, especially at [the] exit of Turns 5 and 9, as they are quite high and pointed. "We are talking with the FIA about this, in order to avoid anything unexpected over the weekend."
No other concerns for Pirelli
As for the performance gaps across the compounds on the new layout, these are an estimated 0.4 seconds between the Hard and Medium, and a bigger-than-expected 0.6 seconds between the Medium and Soft. "The FP1 session was all about familiarisation with the new circuit layout and the fresh asphalt on the new sections using the Soft tyres," added Isola. "The more representative conditions of FP2 allowed the teams to concentrate more on realistic race and qualifying simulations using both Soft and Medium compounds for a direct comparison. "There was some abrasion on the softest compound in the morning with higher temperatures, which as usual improved with more running and a high degree of track evolution - thanks also to the support races."
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