During the last year or two Michelin front slick has become MotoGP’s limiting factor, due to a surge in new technology (downforce aerodynamics, shape-shifters and so on) which has overloaded the tire, which wasn’t designed for such loads.
This is why there’s often less overtaking in MotoGP, because all the riders are at the limit of the front un tire, so if someone breaks a meter later than a rival he will most likely run wide or crash.
As veteran MotoGP engineer Ramon Forced explains, “Once you arrive at the tire limit you cannot go past that limit because the tyres are always the final limit”.
The current tyre also tends to overheat when riders are chasing other riders, something we saw a lot at Red Bull Ring.
'Thus' the news that Michelin is finally going ahead with the creation of a new tire to fix this problem is a huge deal for MotoGP, at a time when many fans complain that the racing isn’t as exciting as it used to be.
The French company’s in house test riders are already evaluating the new slick and, if they give the go-ahead, the tire will be tried by MotoGP factory test riders – Apr ilia’s Lorenzo Salvador, Ducati’s Michele Piero, Honda’s Stefan brawland so on – during October, while the MotoGP paddock is busy racing in the Far East.
If the test riders give the thumbs up, the MotoGP grid will get the chance to try the tire in the one-day post-season tests at Valencia on November 8.
The concept of the new tyre is to make it less susceptible to increases in temperature and pressure, which is the problem with the current tyre: when a rider catches a rival and gets close to the machine in front then his front tyre overheats and loses grip, so he can’t attack. This is why MotoGP races are often more of procession than a battle. The tyre will also run at lower pressure than the current 1.9 bar minimum, for better performance.
“The goal is 1.7 bar and to make the tyre less sensitive to temperature and pressure changes,” said Michelin motor sport manager Piero Taramasso at Red Bull Ring. “The tire will be very different, with a new profile and it will be made with different materials.”
Although Michelin has been criticised for its current front slick’s performance in recent years, as the extra loads imposed by the latest technology have overwhelmed the tire, Taramasso sees the issue from a different point of view.
“When you have a control-tyre championship, then the manufacturers have to design their motorcycles around the tires,” added Taramasso. “But by adding all the aero and the devices, then they aren’t designing their motorcycles around the tires.”
This is a fair point. Many riders and manufacturers complain that the Michelin front isn’t up to the machinery, but perhaps that’s because the manufacturers have worked against the tires, not with the tires.
Michelin doesn’t know when the new front will be ready to race, but it certainly won’t be next year, because front tires take a lot longer to get right than rear tires, because they’re so much more critical in every way.
MotoGP
You must be logged in to post a comment.