No. of passes in F1 decreases by 68%

AR1.com told its readers that the new wider F1 tires and increased downforce was a step in the wrong direction as it would be very hard to pass. Were we right?

Let's look at the total number of passes throughout the entire grid for the first three races:

Race No. of Passes
2017
No. of Passes
2016
% decrease in 2017
Australia 14 50 72%
China 54 182 70%
Bahrain 48 125 62%
Avg 68%

Conclusion: What were they thinking?