Bridgestone tyres face tough test at Catalunya Grand Prix – MotoGP news
Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Division Assistant to Director Hirohide Hamashima has said that the Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya will be a tough round for the Bridgestone asymmetric rear slicks.
The second Spanish event of the current MotoGP season will be held this weekend on June 5, 2011.
The Japanese tyre Manufacturer Company is closely watching the teams and riders to provide them with the best compound and tyre structure. Bridgestone representative Hirohide Hamashima is present at every MotoGP event to observe the feedback brought in by
technical staff of teams and the company itself.
Hamashima said, “Catalunya is a smooth but high speed circuit that generates higher temperature in the right shoulder of the tyres than the left because of its mostly right-handed nature. Turn three and the last section of the lap generates very high rear
tyre temperature and makes Catalunya one of the toughest circuits of the year for our rear tyres.”
The Japanese tyre company will provide asymmetric rear slicks to the MotoGP riders for the Catalan Grand Prix. This step is taken to withstand the high temperatures produced on the rubber during the laps, especially on the right side of the tyres.
The asymmetric rear tyres are available in two different levels of compounds- medium and hard rubber. Both types are constructed in a similar compound layout, carrying soft compound rubber in the left shoulder of the tyre. This type of layout is designed
to deal with the demanding conditions of the Catalan circuit. It was designed after the riders put the effort to test the rubber and provided useful information.
Hamashima, while commenting about the rear slicks and track demands said, “There are eight right-hand corners, most of which are long and fast, and only five left-handers, most of which are much slower so there is a significant imbalance between rear tyre
temperatures in the right and left shoulders, so for this reason we have selected asymmetric rear slicks to balance these demands.”
He also added that the significant character of the tyres is that they are built in precise and balanced compound choice to cope up with the different pressure levels and temperatures imposed on the tyres and provide optimum rider feel.
As per the data gathered from the 2010 Catalunya GP, the softer version of rubber compound would have been a better option in providing consistent grip. With all the data and feedback this season, a softer version of rear slicks will be used. Let’s see if
it turns out the way it has been planned by Bridgestone.
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