Tyre-saving rule tweak likely in 2012

According to two authoritative figures, a tweak or two to the tyre rules is likely for 2012.

Bernie Ecclestone told Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport that new supplier Pirelli has done "an incredible job" in providing tyres that degrade quickly in order to spice up the show.

But the interviewer told the F1 chief executive that qualifying is often "uninteresting" because drivers choose to save fresh tyres for the crucial race.

"The solution for that is very simple: to provide more sets of tyres to the drivers," said Ecclestone.

The tyre-saving practice sometimes involves a driver graduating to the next phase of qualifying, but then refusing to use waste another set of tyres in bidding for a higher grid spot.

"It’s true," Pirelli motor sport director Paul Hembery told the Spanish sports daily AS, "we need to stop that little trick."