VOL. 52 ISSUE 14 APRL 12, 2016 P29
MICHELIN RUSHES NEW TIRES TO AUSTIN
Michelin, back in MotoGP
after seven years away, made
an impressive recovery from the
disasters of Argentina, com-
missioning a whole new rear
tire with a stiffer carcass con-
struction, making 500 of them,
then shipping them to Texas, all
within five days of the last race.
In fact, only the softer com-
pound arrived for Friday's first
two free practices, with the
harder tires arriving on Saturday,
but in time for riders and techni-
cians to adapt, and for most to
agree they were the obvious
choice for the race.
"The casing is a little bit
stronger than before, and the
compound a little bit softer," said
project manager Piero Taram-
asso.
The emergency rethink was
triggered by the delamination of
Scott Redding's rear tire during
free practice in Argentina, which
caused a major disruption.
Eventually a shortened race
was split into two parts, with a
compulsory bike (and thus tire)
change halfway through. The
same measure was adopted
in Australia in 2013, when the
Bridgestones proved unequal to
the abrasive new track surface.
Loris Baz's Ducati also suf-
fered a top-speed rear blowout
during pre-season tests, and in
Argentina Jorge Lorenzo had led
rider demands for urgent action
by Michelin. "This should not
happen in MotoGP," he said.
But with both problems afflict-
ing Ducati riders, Valentino Ros-
si chose to blame the bikes for
being too powerful rather than
the tires for lacking strength.
The Yamahas suffered no
problems in testing and in both
races so far, he said. He had
been ready to race the full
distance in Argentina on his pre-
ferred softer rear tire, but all had
been ordered to use the harder
option for safety reasons.
He told Italian press-men: "I
hope the other bikes, especially
the Ducati, can fix the problem,
because otherwise we all must
race with a very hard tire, and
this is not good for the show or
for performance. They have to
fix the problem."
Michelin increased the front
tire choice from two to three,
mindful of the fast and demand-
ing circuit's special demands
and very hard braking. "After
seven years away, we are still
experimenting," said
Taramasso.
Those who pre-
ferred the softer rear
tire were both riders
of the sweet-handling
Suzuki, and Dani
Pedrosa. The Repsol
Honda veteran is the
lightest rider on the
grid, and reported it
was impossible for him
to get heat into the
harder rear tire.
Michael Scott
Michelin's response to
the Argentina debacle
was swift and impressive.
