Apr.11 (GMM) Paul di Resta claims he was hit several times by tyre “marbles” during the Malaysian grand prix.
Off the racing line, the Sepang circuit was littered with discarded chunks of Pirelli’s synthetic compounds that roll off the tyres as they degrade.
“Come the end of the race, it gets difficult to overtake,” Scottish rookie di Resta is quoted by the Telegraph.
“The other big thing is that they kept coming up and hitting me in the hands. In the middle of a fast corner, these lumps of rubber would be smacking into my hands as I turned the wheel.
“Rubber is not the softest material and if it got you in the right place, it could hurt,” said the Force India driver.
Pirelli motor sport director Paul Hembery said he was not aware if di Resta’s complaint was widespread.
“I have not had those comments from the top three (finishers) but if it’s an issue, we will have to confront it,” he said.
“There was a lot of overtaking though. We will have to analyse all the overtaking manoeuvres but the marbles have to go somewhere and that is a difficulty for us,” the Briton added.
