F1’s two main tyre warmer suppliers, Germany’s KLS and long-established British company MA Horne, are known to be exploring ways of reducing power consumption.
Removing that requirement completely is one of the main reasons behind F1's drive for a blanket ban, along with a reduction in the amount of freight that is shipped around the world.
However drivers have consistently opposed the ban, and Pirelli’s most recent test – conducted with Alpine and Red Bull at Monza earlier this month – did little to convince them.
Plans for a ban to be introduced in 2024 have already been shelved, but Pirelli is continuing its test programme on the assumption that it will be announced as the winner of the 2025-28 tender contract.
The FIA is also still hoping to reduce the number of sets of tyres used by each driver, something it has already began to address with the alternative tyre allocation trialled this season.
The subject of blankets was discussed at length at the drivers’ briefing in Singapore, where GPDA director George Russell claimed that as much power can be saved over a season by switching off paddock hospitality lighting at night.
But the FIA's view is that it’s not a case of either/or and that the issue has to be addressed globally, a philosophy that Russell accepts.
"I think when it comes to sustainability, there's so much that needs to be done on all fronts,” he said when asked by Autosport about the Singapore debate.
Source: Autosport