• The MICHELIN Power Slick MotoGP 2024 tires allowed Michelin's partners to beat the circuit record during Friday practice.
• The Grand Prix was very spectacular, with a large number of overtakes, a sign of the drivers' high confidence in their tires.
• In qualifying, the circuit record was lowered by more than a second by Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing), who also beat that of the fastest lap in the race the next day. The duration of the Grand Prix and Sprint race has also been improved.
• Whatever the ground temperature, the MICHELIN Power Slick with Medium compound was perfect for the front wheel. At the rear, all the drivers chose the Soft mixture during the Sprint race, and some switched to the Medium notch in the Grand Prix, with excellent results each time.
It's a great weekend of two-wheel competition which has just ended on the COTA (Circuit of The Americas), near Austin, the capital of Texas. This is a spectacular route, and in particular its first left turn after a climb punished by a positive difference in altitude of more than 40 m! The Texan circuit extends over 5,513 km, has 20 turns (9 right and 11 left), but also a long straight line of more than 1 m, where the motorcycles reach 200 km/h.
It was a playground where the MotoGP riders were able to fully express themselves, since four of them had already beaten the absolute track record in the qualifying session on Friday afternoon. The next day, the pace intensified further, Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) recording a new reference time during Q2 at 2'00''864, or 1''028 below the record of Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), established at 2'01''892 during the 2023 pole position. Other numerical records (see below), just as significant, were also recorded during this weekend which highlighted the versatility and consistency of the new compound compounds for the MICHELIN Power Slick.
« After the three very different races that have taken place since the start of the season, we see at each stage that our new rubber compounds are successful. They represent a real asset for our partners ", noted Piero Taramasso, manager of the Michelin Two-Wheel competition. “ Whether it is Qatar, Portugal and now the United States, we have broken several records each time. In Austin, even if the grip level remained low throughout the weekend, the pace observed was impressive. We also note that Maverick Viñales set the new race lap record at 14rd Grand Prix round. He knew how to take full advantage of his two Medium compound tires both in the peloton and during the comeback that he was able to orchestrate throughout the Grand Prix, to ultimately triumph. This is characteristic of the long-term performance and exceptional consistency of our tires, which continue to offer their best after more than 40 minutes of intense battles on the track. Finally, I would note that our tires support the progress in the performance of all our partners, the first three places in qualifying and in the Grand Prix being occupied by three distinct manufacturers. »
In Austin Michelin brought front tires with a symmetrical tread, with three types of rubber – Soft, Medium and Hard. For the rear, Michelin partners could use their allocation according to two choices, Soft and Medium. Given the configuration of the circuit, the rear tire was on the other hand asymmetrical, with the right shoulder harder than the left.
Saturday afternoon, Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) won the Sprint race (10 laps) ahead of Marc Márquez (Gresini Racing) and Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing).
The next day, the Grand Prix (20 laps) was won again by Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing), this time ahead of Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech 3), and Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team).
During the Grand Prix, the action on the track was constant with a large number of overtakes throughout the laps, from the lights going out until the final turns. A spectacle made possible by the consistency of performance of Michelin tires, regardless of the rubber chosen for the tire (Soft or Medium rubber).
The new records, broken during this 2024 edition
- Circuit record: 2'00''864, by Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing), which improves the previous record by more than a second (2'01''892).
- Best lap in the race: 2'02''575, also signed by Maverick Viñales, who achieved this exceptional time in the second half of the Grand Prix (14rd round).
- Duration of the Sprint race: 20'27''825. This is more than seven seconds less than in 2023 (20'35''270), which represents an improvement of seven tenths of a second per lap, on average.
- Grand Prix duration: 41'09''503, an improvement of more than 5 seconds.
The next round of the MotoGP World Championship will be the Gran Premio de España from April 26 to 28, 2024. The riders will meet on this occasion at the Jerez circuit, in southern Spain (Andalusia).
Results from the 2024 MotoGP Grand Prix of the Americas, at COTA in Austin:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
