Pirelli chief Marco Tronchetti Provera has said that any suggestions that the changes to their tyre compounds for 2012 have been to favour fellow Italians Ferrari are "nonsense", saying that the changes were made for all F1 teams.
Pirelli have brought in a series of new compounds for 2012, primarily designed to be softer than the 2011 tyres in order to encourage more diverse strategies.
However, there have been some mutterings that the changes will benefit Ferrari more than their rivals.
The Italian team struggled throughout 2011 on the harder Pirelli compounds, suffering from an inability to get the hard and medium compounds up to temperature.
The move to softer tyres follows Pirelli's decision to effectively mothball their hardest compound midway through the 2011 season, a move that was again suggested benefitted Ferrari.
But Provera denied that there was any thought given to favouring Ferrari with their new tyres.
"Nonsense, it was a choice we made in accordance with all the teams and drivers,” he bellowed at the Italian La Repubblica newspaper.
But he did suggest that as an Italian, he did find himself supporting the team during races.
“Naturally. If you’re Italian your dream is for Ferrari to win, if you’re English then it is McLaren. Everyone’s heart is where it is," he was quoted as saying by the Spanish AS newspaper.
He went on: “There are Italian companies with the right approach in terms of competitiveness, technology, quality of the people.
“They can offer a great contribution to restoring confidence in the country."
Pirelli rejoined the Formula One grid at the start of 2011, replacing the departing Bridgestone company as F1's sole tyre supplier.
But although the sport currently has no plans to open up the rules to allow another 'tyre war' between competing companies, Provera said that he would be happy to enter such a fight in the future.
“Alone or with a competitor, it’s ok either way,” he shrugged, “F1 decided that the tyres should be the same for everyone, but we do not care.”
Pirelli will put their new 2012 tyres through their paces at the first pre-season test of 2012 at the Jerez circuit, starting on February 7th.
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