It was announced earlier this month by the organisers of the WEC, the FIA and the Automobile Club de l’Ouest, that the new-for-2023 ban on tyre pre-heating would be temporarily suspended for the centrepiece race at La Sarthe, after a number of accidents in the previous race at Spa prompted widespread calls for a rethink on the ruling.
Kobayashi was among the most vocal about the potential safety hazards posed by not being able to use tyre warmers in the cool temperatures at Spa.
The ex-Formula 1 driver backed the move to bring back tyre warmers at Le Mans, fearing that there could have been a big accident involving a gentleman driver without them.
“As professional drivers I don’t think it’s a huge problem, but Le Mans means bronze-rated [amateur] drivers, and that increases the possibility of a huge collision or accident, which we don’t want to see happen,” Kobayashi told Autosport.
“I respect what the FIA and ACO decided, safety is first. I think the target to reduce CO2 [emissions] is something we have to try, but we need to consider how we combine that with the safety side.”
Asked if he was comfortable with the tyre warmer ban being enforced again for the following regular WEC race at Monza, Kobayashi replied: “Le Mans includes night-time running, which increases the risk, but at Monza, if the weather is ok, it won’t be a big challenge.
“I don’t have a big problem with it, but we just don’t want to see a big accident for the centenary Le Mans.”
Source: Autosport