The same selection was used at March’s Australian race, but many teams struggled with graining on the super-softs around Albert Park. As the surface of China’s Shanghai International Circuit is believed to be rougher than the Melbourne track, concerns have been raised that the issues will only worsen this weekend. Bridgestone, however, stand by their decision.
"We decide the allocations for the races based on many factors including past experience, test information and feedback from the teams,” explained Bridgestone’s director of motorsport tyre development, Hirohide Hamashima. “All teams have a dedicated Bridgestone engineer who works with the drivers and team engineers so we have constant information regarding any tyre issues.
“The teams are made aware of our allocations for races many weeks in advance, so there is plenty of time for feedback. For 2009 we are making a bigger difference between the two compounds and this is in response to requests for this from the FIA and the teams. This gives more of a challenge for the races, and of course any change brings many opinions.
Brawn BGP001
Brawn have a quite different central channel to their diffuser, with the shape of the deformable structure being used to create a sort of double-decker (black arrows) design. However, the most important and controversial aspect is that to work properly this section of the diffuser needs to be fed by air. Highlighted in yellow, you can easily see the hole in the reference plane (red arrow), which actually starts far further forward than is apparent from the drawing, thanks to the small dimensions of the gearbox. The hole increases the speed of airflow as it heads towards the higher rear venturi section, where it expands and creates more downforce. Other teams are arguing that the presence of the hole is against the regulations.
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