The 2021 MotoGP season is about to go to archive. The two-wheeled Circus arrives in Valencia with the verdicts now written: Fabio Quartararo is world champion and Ducati has taken the constructors’ crown, but the Ricardo Tormo weekend will have a historical and very symbolic value, because it will be the last race of the career of a living legend like Valentino Rossi.
Whether there are titles at stake or not, this changes little for Michelin, which in any case must prepare itself to face every possible scenario in the best possible way, after having done an excellent job in Portimao last weekend. The manager Piero Taramasso took stock of the situation for Motorsport.com, starting from an analysis of the Algarve Grand Prix, to then go on to explain what the pitfalls of this last round may be.
“The weekend in Portimao was a positive weekend for Michelin. Finally we had one that was all dry and this made things a bit easier, even if there was a certain difficulty for everyone in getting the tires in. temperature, “Taramasso told Motorsport.com.
Why did this situation arise?
“This was due to three different factors: the first was the type of asphalt, which has a bit of a lack of ‘teeth’ and is very little aggressive towards the tires. Therefore, it took at least two or three laps to bring them in the optimal temperature range. The second is the wind, which has always been cold and in some moments even quite strong. The third is the configuration of the track, which has many ups and downs: in the climbs the front is discharged and in the descents the Even this does not help the tires to work in the optimal temperature. However this thing was clear to us since FP1, because we saw that the pressures and temperatures were struggling to rise. This however was also understood by the teams, who worked to make the bikes a little softer. But also by the riders, who knew they had to try to keep the tires as stressed as possible “.
In any case, the performances were remarkable …
“The soft rear allowed us to set good times, because Bagnaia further improved the absolute track record in qualifying. In the race, on the other hand, there was no chance to beat the distance one, because the race was interrupted at 23 Lap with the red flag, but the lap in the race also resisted, perhaps also because most of the riders mounted the hard rear tire. “
At the rear there are also those who chose the average, as in the case of the three riders who got on the podium …
“They are two solutions that worked well throughout the weekend and were the same specifications we had brought to the April race. The average guaranteed good consistency and a little more grip on the lean angle. The hard one, on the other hand, had no decay. practically until the end, it also offered more stability and therefore better traction when exiting the corners. Bagnaia had a perfect weekend, because he started from the front and made no mistakes. Maybe the average gave him a small advantage in the first laps , because it had that extra-grip that allowed to distance those who had the hard one. “
Regarding the issue of warming up the tires, weren’t you surprised that most of the grid chose the hard one at the rear?
“No, because it was enough to load it properly and it was able to generate a good grip. And the advantage it gave in terms of stability is not to be underestimated. On an up and down track with many changes of direction, having a stable rear can give you more. confidence and maybe it allows you to open the throttle a little earlier. However when we tried it it always worked well, because we were always around the crossover temperature at which both specs could work well. “
The only spec that wasn’t used over the weekend is the hard front …
“Exactly. The hard front was never used over the course of the weekend, because it would have been too ‘delicate’ for the left side. I think it would have taken five to ten degrees more asphalt temperature to get through. use it “.
One of the things that surprised me the most was seeing Alex Marquez so competitive with the hard tire at the rear, as Honda is known to have rear grip problems …
“They tend to always go one step softer than the others, but on this circuit their bike has performed well, because since the first day we have seen many Hondas in front. When the bike is good, they can also afford to make other choices. tire level. But when they can’t find mechanical grip, then they are forced to fall back on the soft. In this case, however, they were okay and it showed “.
This weekend ends in Valencia: a great classic that always contains important pitfalls …
“Valencia is one of the most demanding circuits for us. As it is already November, it is quite cold, so the temperatures do not help. Furthermore, the circuit also offers a very low level of grip and this also complicates things. We still have compounds that are designed. specifically for low temperatures, because we know that in Valencia there is this problem every year “.
So what kind of solutions have you prepared for Valencia?
“They are all asymmetrical tires, both front and rear, with a harder compound on the left side and a little softer on the right side. And they are the same specs we brought last year, so there are no news. “.
What are the most critical points on the track?
“The right-hand curves, and in particular 4, because it comes after a long sequence of left-hand curves. Furthermore, we are talking about curves that tend to be not very demanding. On the other hand, as regards the left side, there is curve 13 which is long and in acceleration, so it is particularly stressful for the tire. At that point it is easy to see the temperature spikes “.
Another critical aspect that distinguishes Valencia is the weather, because rain is not a rare thing …
“I looked at the forecasts and until a couple of days ago it seemed that there could be a risk of rain, but now it seems to have slipped beyond the weekend. In Valencia, however, being close to the sea, you are never sure. be cold and wet, but we are ready for anything. In case of rain we have the standard allocation, with the harder compound on the right side as regards the rear, while the front ones remain symmetrical. And they are the only symmetrical ones that we will bring this weekend. In Valencia, however, the variables are the cold and the weather “.
Next week there will be two days of collective testing in Jerez, which will actually open the 2022 season. Have you already chosen the allocation for those too?
“We should bring the same specifications with which they did the race this year, because this should allow the teams to do their development work. On our side, instead, we should propose a rear that we had already tested both in the Qatar and in the tests. Misano, which is designed to improve the warm-up of the tire in the first two or three laps. Since it should be colder, it should offer us more interesting data, given that it is designed especially for these conditions. “
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