Martin Brundle agrees with Christian Horner that resolving the porpoise of F1 cars is a matter for individual teams and not the FIA.
The porpoise, or bounce, has been a feature of the first season with the new rules of the sport, which goes back to the unofficial tests in Barcelona, but now it seems more frequent than ever.
The 2.2 km straight on the Baku City Circuit for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix aggravated the problem for certain teams and drivers, especially Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton, who suffered back pain throughout the year. weekend, but still managed to finish a commendable fourth place. .
Horner, whose Red Bull team has been less affected by the porpoise than many of its rivals, suspects some builders are encouraging their riders to complain loudly about the physical effects of pressuring the FIA to open a alternative solution to security rules. reasons.
But there are ways in which the same teams could make life more comfortable for their riders, albeit at the expense of car performance.
“If it was a real network-wide security concern, then it should be considered,” Horner said. “But if it only affects isolated people or teams, that’s something the team should deal with.”
Brundle, who was in Le Mans supporting his son Alex in the 24-hour race instead of in Baku, takes a similar stance.
“I think the team (Mercedes) is playing very hard because they want some changes, the drivers want some changes to be made, because Mercedes is especially bad,” Brundle told Sky Sports News.
“The teams that have solved it clearly say that it is a problem of Mercedes, not of Formula 1.
“Of course the team can fix it by lifting the car, but then they lose a lot of performance. They’ve had to sacrifice comfort for performance and what’s amazing is that it looks like Mercedes can’t control what it really looks like. a pretty good car if only I could unlock it.
“I think Christian is saying more or less exactly what I say, it’s a problem for the teams to solve.
“It has to be managed, but asking the other teams to change the rules to help Mercedes is a bit like asking a turkey to vote for Christmas.
“But I’m not underestimating what George Russell and Lewis Hamilton are going through because it seems especially painful and the Ferrari drivers, just at their crucial braking points, that just seems complicated to me; I don’t know how they go. In the corners, frankly.” .