Pirelli’s planned ‘tweaks’ to the 2013 tyres from the Canadian GP onwards has been reigned in by the FIA.

A ruling made by the sport’s governing body has stipulated that it will only allow changes to be made to the tyres on the grounds of safety. As a result the expected changes will be less significant that intially planned.

The FIA has clearly stated that it will not accept changes aimed at cutting down on the number of pitstops much less to reduce tyre degradation. Instead of reverting back to 2012 specification tyres Pirelli have been instructed to make adjustment to the current specification of tyres.

Article 12.6.3 of the technical regulations have been cited by the FIA with regard to their decision. The rule states:

“Tyre specifications will be determined by the FIA no later than 1 September of the previous season. Once determined in this way, the specification of the tyres will not be changed during the championship season without the agreement of all competing teams.”

There is however a different clause within the regulations which states that changes could be introduced “if the tyres are deemed by the tyre supplier and technical delegate as technically unsuitable.” But the FIA is adamant that the current ‘issues’ with the 2013 tyres falls within the purview of this rule.

Pirelli motosport director Paul Hembery admitted that the changes to the tyres would now be of a more modest nature. “Let’s wait and see exactly what changes we will be making, but we are doing everything we can to minimise what will be different,” he said.

The prospective changes were expected to benefit teams such as Mercedes and Red Bull who have been struggling to get on top of the tyres. In contrast, Ferrari and Lotus will breathe a sigh of relief as they look to maintain their tyre advantage.