Why inflation left Mercedes poorer at Silverstone
Max Verstappen's surprise victory at the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix came as Red Bull emerged kinder on its tyres than Mercedes' all-conquering W11, as the combination high-energy corners, heat and inflated pressures created a perfect storm
Motorsport.com's Prime content
The best content from Motorsport.com Prime, our subscription service. Subscribe here to get access to all the features.
"They're balloons now," said Lewis Hamilton of his Pirelli tyres post-70th Anniversary Grand Prix. "They're the highest pressures we've ever had on a track like that. I wouldn't be surprised if that was a thing for us, but I don't know if anyone else struggled with blistering like we had so it's something we'll look into."
And it's true. Between weekends, and perhaps in response to the softer grade of tyres being run and the trio of blow-outs last time out, the tyres had swelled up thanks to a change in the mandated tyre pressures.
Share Or Save This Story
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.