Formula 1 bosses will discuss the '17 rules "once more in a meeting hosted by Pirelli in Milan on Tuesday," according to Adam Cooper of AUTO WEEK.
The informal meeting "was originally supposed to be for drivers to express their thoughts on the future direction of Formula One tires."
However, the day "has taken on greater significance after a lack of progress in another gathering at London's Heathrow Airport on Friday." It focused on aerodynamics and "was the latest in a series intended to finalize a response to the mandate given by the Strategy Group" -- the six top teams plus the FIA and F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone -- last year. That mandate "called for more spectacular cars that would be five seconds a lap faster," and since then the teams have been working on plans for an increase in downforce in '17. The big issue is that "this push for high downforce and faster lap times has effectively been stopped by tire manufacturer Pirelli confirming that it would have to run its tires at such high pressures that the lower grip that resulted would in effect cancel out downforce gains." With time pressing, and tires a key issue, it has been decided "to take advantage of Tuesday's Pirelli gathering." Now all the key players, including team bosses, "will attend and discuss the wider picture of rules for 2017, and not just tires" (AUTO WEEK, 2/1).
