Zoom Slow laps to put a heat cycle through the tyres

Renault may have stumbled upon the secret to getting the most out of Bridgestone's tyres.

Up and down pitlane this year, a common theme has been competitors' difficulty in consistently finding performance from tyres that seem hyper-sensitive to factors including temperature and pressure.

Renault, however, has enjoyed a run of improved form at the last couple of races, and the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport believes it knows the French squad's secret.

During Saturday morning practice at Budapest, observers wondered about the odd on-track behaviour of Fernando Alonso and Nelson Piquet.

In the opening stages of the session, their R28s circulated notably slowly for quite a few laps, before recording a burst of full speed.

Auto Motor und Sport claims this deliberate start-stop preparation of the tyres gave the drivers consistency and durability for the race.

"Tyres have a memory," BMW Sauber's technical boss Willy Rampf is quoted as confirming.

Interestingly, Sunday at Hungary was a notably poor showing for BMW, whose drivers complained about a massive lack of grip from their Bridgestone tyres.

Only the action from this weekend's Valencia event will show whether Renault repeats its unique tyre-preparation technique, and if the team's rivals attempt to emulate the routine.

Source: GMM
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