Rosberg incident prototype tyres to be discarded: Pirelli

Exclusive tyre supplier to Formula One, Pirelli has issued a response to a deleted tweet by the Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg following a high-speed tyre failure in Bahrain. The manufacturer explained that there were “a number of prototypes, which were completely innovative in terms of structure and compounds” as part of its development plans for the 2014 tyre range.

“This morning Nico Rosberg’s Mercedes was fitted with one of these prototypes,” Pirelli’s statement continued, “a tyre which had only been tested in the laboratory and which will not be proposed again. Thus, the safety of the tyres which will be supplied for the next Championship is not in question.

“The accident which happened to Rosberg’s car is being investigated and the findings will be communicated to the FIA and the teams,” Pirelli concluded, adding that the 2014 Formula One tyre range development is “going according to plan”.