Mercedes denies pushing tyre pressure to the limit

The left rear pressures on both Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg's cars were found to be under the minimum 19.5psi limit a few minutes before the formation lap, which prompted a post race investigation.

In the end, the team was cleared of any wrongdoing after it proved that the tyres were above the limit when they were fitted to the car.

No funny games

While cynics could suggest that Mercedes may have been trying to be clever in allowing the tyre temperatures and pressures to drop after they were fitted to the car, to get better performance, team boss Toto Wolff has dismissed such talk.

"I can absolutely rule that out," said Wolff. "We have worked the whole week after Spa with Pirelli to find solutions in order to make those tyres safe.

"We were very much part of trying to guide them on minimum tyre pressures and minimum camber, which we already had on our car at Spa.

"I can rule out that we would be the ones who were trying to gain an advantage in a way which is absolutely unscientific and uncontrollable.

"How do you want to measure how much a tyre pressure drops when you disconnect it? And why would you have it only on one tyre and then discrepancy between two cars?"

Normal procedure

Wolff said that the team had not deviated from its normal pre-race procedures with tyre blankets – and had co-operated with Pirelli in ensuring its pressures were correct under the currently specified procedures.

The reading that was taken by the FIA later recorded that the pressures had dropped, which was almost certainly the result of the temperatures dropping.

"We followed the procedure established with Pirelli, which was to have the tyres in the blankets, and check the pressures together with Pirelli," he said.

"The pressures were well above the minimum because safety is important for us. The tyres on the car for whatever reason, maybe because the tyres cooled down, a different pressure was found on one of the tyres. It was a tiny discrepancy."