Mercedes boss Ross Brawn believes that the new tactic of drivers failing to set lap times in the final Q3 section of qualifying is not entirely a bad thing, saying that the tactic means they can add to the spectacle in the race.
With teams focusing on tyre management in 2011, given the new and more heavily-degrading Pirelli tyres that have been used this season, the Q3 section of qualifying has been hit with a lack of action.Fans have criticised the sport for a number of Q3 no-shows, with drivers from teams likely to start at the tail end of the top ten anyway failing to set times in order to save their tyres.
Pirelli has admitted that the situation needs changing, and have suggested a number of possible rule changes for 2012 to help encourage more qualifying action.
These range from a return of special qualifying tyres, to simply increasing the tyre allocations for each driver at every race weekend.
But Brawn suggested that there were "some positives" to the lack of Q3 action, with the teams that save tyres then able to put on more of a show on Sunday.
"I think there is two ways of looking at it," Brawn told the ITV-F1 website this week.
"One is that, perversely, it can add some interest in certain ways: you can have the cars at the back of that pack with new tyres and more opportunity perhaps in the race."
He explained: "Our situation at the moment [with Mercedes] is we've got a gap between ourselves and the top three teams and therefore it's an incentive for us to try and save tyres to be stronger in the race.
"If we closed that gap down then of course we'd have a bit of a run at it."
He added that he was sure that there were rule changes that could be made in order to improve the show, but suggested that such a move might not be necessary.
"There are ways and means [to eradicate the issue] but I wouldn't always look at what's going on now as completely negative." he mused.
"The crowd are interested in who's setting pole and having some cars at the back of the top 10 with new tyres mixes things up a bit. So it can have some positives.”
But as far as the best way to ensure a return of Q3 action was concerned, Brawn said that the rule forcing drivers to start the race on the tyres they qualified on needed to be changed.
"I think if you want to eliminate it you've probably got to have a system where the tyres you use on a Saturday in Q3 you give back and you have replaced by Pirelli on a Sunday morning," he muttered.
"[That way] there's no incentive to save tyres in Q3."
He added: “I can't think of many other ways that we could avoid the benefit that comes from strategies that here are.”
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