MICHELIN MAKES RECORDS TUMBLE AS RINS SHINES IN THE SILVERSTONE SUN2019-08-26 10:09Michelin completed a full set of new records with its MotoGP™ tyres during this weekend’s GoPro British Grand Prix from Silverstone in England as Alex Rins (Team SUZUKI ECSTAR) took victory with an exciting last-corner manoeuvre. Michelin brought a range of tyres which it was confident were ideally suited to the newly resurfaced 5,900m Silverstone circuit and right from the first session on Friday fast and consistent times were being posted by the riders. This was highlighted in the afternoon session as Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) broke the All-Time Lap Record. This was then bettered by the Frenchman in Saturday morning’s Free Practice, before Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) set a new low of 1’58.168 in Qualifying, a huge 1.773 seconds quicker than the previous best to give Michelin and himself the all-time and pole lap records. Beautiful weather was a consistent feature all weekend over the Silverstone track, culminating with an air temperature of 31°C on Sunday, making this the hottest race-day of the year so far. With track temperatures at 44°C, the majority of the field chose the hard MICHELIN Power Slick compound tyres for the front and rear and these performed exceptionally for the 20-laps, as throughout the race the lap-record was broken a number of times, before Marquez set a new best with a 1’59.963 on lap-10, over one-and-a-half-seconds under the existing record. As the lights went out to signal the start, Marquez got the holeshot and led for the first lap. Very soon Rins was in close contention as the pair pushed hard at the front, using their Michelin tyres to the full to produce a close and fast race. As the final lap began, Rins closed on Marquez and saved the best until the very end, he attacked on the inside of the final corner, getting the grip and drive from his MICHELIN Power Slick tyres to take the victory by just 0.013 seconds from Marquez. His winning time of 40’12.799 set another new record, as it was under the existing race duration best by almost 33-seconds. Third on the podium went to Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), with Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) in fourth. Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) was fifth, as he secured the Best Independent Rider position. Home-star Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) came over the line in sixth, with Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team) and Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) in seventh and eighth respectively. Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) was ninth and Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) rounded out the top-ten. With three different manufacturers on the podium, all six manufacturers in the top-ten and all of the top-ten recording race duration times within the previous record, the Michelin ethos of making tyres that work for all bikes was extremely evident at Silverstone today. To round off a perfect weekend of record breaking for Michelin, the Event Best Maximum Speed was also broken, as Miller, Crutchlow and Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), all set a new high of 333.3 km/h through the speed trap. Michelin now heads directly to Misano in Italy for a two-day Official Test next week, before the MotoGP paddock then returns to the same circuit for round 13 of the championship, which is scheduled for Sunday 15th September. Alex Rins – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR: “It was incredibly today; we have worked hard to prepare for this race because it was new asphalt and it was all new for the tyres. I was pleased with the way the Michelins worked all weekend, they did a very good job and so did we, so I am very happy.” Piero Taramasso – Michelin Motorsport Two-Wheel Manager: “This has been an incredibly positive and successful weekend for us. Silverstone has done a good job with the resurfacing and this new asphalt enabled us to show how well the tyres work when the grip and surface is at its best. We brought a range of tyres that we believed would work in England, but we never expected it to be so hot, so instead of seeing more soft and medium compounds on the bikes, the majority of the field used hard tyres on the front and rear for the race. These worked very well and gave us a new duration record by a huge margin, a new race lap record and these added to the pole and overall record which were set on Saturday, and the new speed record, meant we got a full house this weekend. To witness another great last-lap and last corner battle was again especially pleasing as it shows the durability and grip that that the tyres have after such a long and demanding race. We will take all the positives from this weekend, but we have also learnt a lot which we will use in the decision for next year’s allocation. Now we head to Misano and continue testing new tyres which could be added to the range for 2020.” Source: Michelin Motorsport Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story |
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