Pirelli: Raikkonen's Silverstone problem possibly caused by contact

Pirelli has ruled out a structural failure as the cause of Kimi Raikkonen's tire problem late in the British Grand Prix, suggesting instead that it may have been caused by contact.

Both Ferraris encountered problems with their front-left tires late in the final laps of the race, prompting Pirelli to conduct a investigations into the two incidents over the days that followed.

"The results of the analysis on Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen's front-left soft compound tire, which experienced an issue at the end of the recent British Grand Prix, reveal specific damage in two places at the edge of the belt close to the internal shoulder area," the statement read. "This damage is not present throughout any other areas of the tire whatsoever. Furthermore, the belt and structure do not show any signs of fatigue.

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"The possible initial cause of this damage is consistent with contact against an external body, leading to a partial separation of the belt from the carcass in the two affected areas. In one of these two places, as a logical consequence, part of the tread also became detached.

"This damage did not however compromise the actual tire structure, with Raikkonen able to make his way safely back to the pits on an inflated tire.

"A number of detailed tests have since been carried out, both destructive and non-destructive, on other tires used by frontrunners at the British Grand Prix with a similar or bigger distance on them compared to the set used by Raikkonen (for 25 laps). On no occasion was there any sign of fatigue, detachment or laceration – or even the beginning of such problems – that affected the structure of the tire.

"In conclusion, Pirelli can confirm that no issues have emerged connected with the tire itself."

Raikkonen heads into this weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix fifth in the drivers' standings, 19 points behind Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo in fourth. Teammate Sebastian Vettel heads the table with a one point advantage over Lewis Hamilton.