MICHELIN FACES FIVE RACES IN TWO WEEKENDS ON THE ITALIAN COAST2020-09-08 16:07Michelin’s next mission in this extremely unusual season is to head to Italy where the newly resurfaced Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli will stage a busy schedule with two MotoGP™ and three MotoE™ races spread over two consecutive weekends firstly in the Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini and then the debut running of the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini. The 4,226m circuit is situated close to the coastline of the Adriatic Riviera and its technical layout is one of the most intricate of the season. High-speed curves and corners, slow turns and a short straight put specific demands on the front tyres and the MICHELIN Power Slick range chosen for the two events have been matched to the new asphalt – which was tested earlier this year by Michelin – to give the riders and machines the best possible performance from the tyres around this precise track. The six left- and ten right-hand turns of the circuit will be tackled by a range of soft, medium and hard compound front slick tyres, all with a symmetric finish, plus the addition of a fourth specification – as the rules allow for a newly resurfaced track – of a hard asymmetric front slick – with a harder right-hand side – to give the riders a greater scope of available tyres. The soft, medium and hard rears will be asymmetric with a harder right shoulder due to the greater number of turns in that direction and the increased stress on that side of the tyre throughout the 27-laps of the two MotoGP races. Commonly known as the ‘San Marino Grand Prix’, the event’s location and time of the year has led to many wet days being encountered in recent years and with this prospect in place the MICHELIN Power Rain tyres will be in the allocation for such eventualities. Soft and medium symmetric fronts and asymmetric soft and medium rears, with the harder right side, will give the riders ultimate grip in the wet if there is any precipitation. Situated close to the city of Rimini, the circuit has been a permanent fixture on the MotoGP calendar since its return in 2007. It is always a colourful affair with the 60,000 capacity being filled to the full. This season due to the COVID-19 restrictions MotoGP has taken place behind closed doors, but the two races at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli will be the first to admit fans inside the arena. At the behest of local authorities, 10,000 spectators will be welcomed every day and have to meet various rules and regulations regarding social distancing to give them the opportunity to be trackside. MotoGP will follow the same schedule for both weekends, with Friday having two Free Practice sessions and Saturday two more before the excitement of Qualifying. Sunday 13th September will see the Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini get underway at 14.00hrs (14.00hrs CEST, 13.00hrs BST, 12.00hrs UST), with the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini having the same timetable the following weekend, with a repeat of the start time on Sunday 20th September. Michelin will also be hard at work with three FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup races during the two events, with the French manufacturer being the Official Tyre Supplier to the 100% electric Energica Ego Corsa motorcycles. This will be the second racetrack that the new MICHELIN Slick MotoE tyres – with their redesigned rear slick and the whole range now featuring biomaterials and regenerated materials – have been used in 2020, following a successful debut at Jerez in Spain during July. Michelin’s new tyres for MotoE are more efficient and environmentally friendly and are now benefitting from the use of sustainable resources in the compounds. The slicks will be available in medium at the front and soft at the rear – the same as at every event – both of which are symmetrical, and if wet weather arrives the MICHELIN Power Rain soft tyres at the front and extra soft at the rear, both of which are also symmetrical, will be in the riders’ allocation. Michelin will participate in MotoE practice sessions and the excitement of the E-Pole in the lead up to the races. At the Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini just one race will be held, with the main event taking place at 10.05hrs local time (10.05hrs CEST, 09.05hrs BST, 08.05hrs UTC) on Sunday 13th September, whilst the following weekend a double header will take place at the Gran Premio TISSOT dell’Emilia Romagna e della Riviera di Rimini. Race one will be on Saturday 19th September at 16-15hrs local time (16.15hrs CEST, 15.15hrs BST, 14.15hrs UTC),followed by race two at 10.05hrs local time (10.05hrs CEST, 09.05hrs BST, 08.05hrs UTC) on Sunday 20th September. Piero Taramasso – Michelin Motorsport Two-Wheel Manager: “Back-to-back races are always a demanding time, but at these two events ahead of us we also have the added pressure of three MotoE races over the two weekends, as well as the two MotoGP races. It will be a very busy time, but everybody involved will be totally focused on their different roles to make sure all the riders – no matter what class – get exactly the same kind of information and assistance. Misano is an unusual circuit and you never really know what to expect. It gave lots of grip in 2018 and we broke records and saw fast and consistent laps, but then last year the asphalt behaved as if there was hardly any traction at all, so it was good to have it resurfaced in readiness for this season and because of testing we conducted with various teams and riders, we have the data to choose this year’s compounds, we now have to see how the asphalt performs during a race weekend. “MotoE will have three races, one during the first weekend and then two the following week. We will be using the new tyres with the biomaterials and regenerated materials, these performed really well at Jerez in July and we expect them to give the riders the grip they need for this form of sustainable racing, which is very important to Michelin. “There will also be a big change during these two weekends because we will have spectators for the first time after five races without any. It will be a smaller amount than is normally at Misano, but this is an important step forward, especially when you consider how much Italy suffered at the start of this pandemic, it is a very positive step to see the relevant authorities taking this decision and allowing some fans in, I hope we all give them a show to be proud of.” Source: Michelin Motorsport Click here to visit our forums to discuss this story |
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