MICHELIN HEADS SOUTH FOR ITS NAMED GRAND PRIX Michelin, F1,Formule 1, construct, konstrukce,grand prix

MICHELIN HEADS SOUTH FOR ITS NAMED GRAND PRIX

Alessandro Barlozzi/Michelin | 19.10.17 | Pneumatiky Michelin

MotoGP 2017

MICHELIN HEADS SOUTH FOR ITS NAMED GRAND PRIX

Michelin is heading over the equator for only the second time this season as the French tyre company and MotoGP™ descends upon Phillip Island for the Michelin® Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix and the 16th round of this enthralling season.

With a race bearing its name as the official sponsor, expectations and pressure is high for Michelin as it moves to one of the most challenging events of the season. The 4,448m circuit is a fast and flowing layout that gives one of the ultimate tests to tyres throughout the whole calendar. With high-speed turns such as Doohan and Stoner Corners and the awe-inspiring turn-12 – a corner which generates the highest tyre temperature on any circuit in MotoGP and leads on to the famous Gardner Straight – this is certainly a track that supplies constant excitement. These incredible corners create high stresses on the tyres and to combat this Michelin has developed a range ideally suited to these unique conditions. The MICHELIN Power Slicks for both the front and rear will be in a soft, medium and hard compound and will feature an asymmetric design with a harder left-hand shoulder to cope with the extra demands faced by that side of the tyre and the increased heat.

Phillip Island has been a permanent fixture on the MotoGP calendar since 1997, before that the track had the distinction of staging the first two Australian Grands Prix in 1989 and 1990. Racing has been happening on the Island for almost 100-years, with the current circuit opening in 1956. The stunning setting on the cliff-tops overlooking the Bass Straight and out to the Tasman Sea, gives one of racing’s great backdrops and adds to the spectacular splendour that the circuit provides. Due to its open position, weather can also be an issue and has given rise to the legend of Phillip Island having four seasons in one day, so the riders and teams need to be prepared for any eventuality. With the possibility of this becoming fact there is every chance the MICHELIN Power Rain tyres will be put to good use during some part of the weekend. This allocation will be matched to the demands of this challenging circuit and the rain tyres will have to work just as hard as their slick counterparts to produce the best performance if the wet weather appears. The available rain tyres will be extra soft and soft symmetric for the front, with an asymmetric extra soft and symmetric soft for the rear.

The MotoGP combatants take to the track on Friday 20th October to begin the preparations for Sunday’s 27-lap race. With three-days of exciting action ahead, Phillip Island – which is only 9km long and 26km wide – will become the centre of the motorcycling universe and when the main event gets underway at 16.00hrs local time (07.00hrs CEST, 06.00hrs BST, 05.00hrs UTC) the Michelin® Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix will be the biggest sporting event on the planet.

Piero Taramasso – Michelin Motorsport Two-Wheel Manager:

“Although every race is important to Michelin, the Phillip Island event has an added significance in that it bears the company’s name as the official sponsor. This gives a lot more involvement and added interest from all involved, not just from within the two-wheel sector, but throughout the whole company. The Asian-Pacific market is very important to Michelin, so to have a race under its name in that region is a great honour and has a lot of significance.

“Phillip Island is one of the one of the most demanding tracks on the calendar and this adds to whole narrative for us as we have the added pressure of such a complicated and challenging circuit, alongside the association of being the title sponsors, so we obviously want to provide good racing and a strong performance from our tyres. We’ve created a range for here that must contend with high lap-speeds and very fast corners, so we need good grip and durability, as well as the facility for the tyres to warm up quickly as it can be quite cold at Phillip Island. This year’s selection has been produced from the data we gathered last season in our first race here for seven-years and from February’s winter test. We have created tyres that will be able to perform at whatever limits Phillip Island can supply – which knowing the history of the track, that could be very extreme in either direction.”