Michelin and the MotoGP™ paddock are back after the summer break and are preparing for the second half of the season which begins with the Monster Energy Grand Prix České republiky at the Automotodrom Brno, in the Czech Republic.
After a break in the MotoGP calendar, the championship resumes with two races in a row since Austria awaits the MotoGP players immediately after Brno. But before heading to the Red Bull Ring, Michelin and the drivers will face the 5,403 km Masaryk Circuit for the 10e round of the season. Built in the forests surrounding Brno, the track offers a lot of elevation changes, violent braking zones, fast curves and strong accelerations that push the tires, riders and motorcycles to the limits. The range of MICHELIN Power Slick tires offered is perfectly adapted to these constraints. The front soft, medium and hard slicks are symmetrical, while the rear slicks are asymmetrical with a harder right side due to the eight turns in that direction compared to six on the left.
Automotodrom Brno is located near the Austrian, Slovak, Hungarian and Polish borders, in the southeast of the Czech Republic. It is the easternmost European circuit which generally attracts a large and noisy crowd on the embankments and in the stands. Originally, it was an urban circuit. Today it is a permanent route, built in 1987, which even includes a golf course.
Les conditions météo peuvent être changeantes à Brno, et même au mois d’août, il y a toujours des risques de pluie, comme ce fut le cas en 2016 et 2017 où les courses furent déclarées “wet”. Les pneus MICHELIN Power Rain sont disponibles en soft et medium pour l’avant et l’arrière, ces derniers étant asymétriques avec un côté droit renforcé, comme les slicks.
Michelin and the MotoGP players will take to the track on Friday August 2 with two Free Practice sessions. Two more are scheduled for Saturday before qualifying in the afternoon which will decide the starting grid for the 21-lap long race. The light will turn green on Sunday August 4 at 14:00 p.m. local time and French time.
Piero Taramasso – Michelin Motorsport Two-Wheel Manager:
“It's always good to take a break, but it's even better to start competing again. Brno is a real test for tires. It is quite complex with a significant difference in altitude between the lower part and the upper part of the circuit. There are many difficult sections where the tires are stressed differently, between hard braking, hard acceleration and several types of curves which exert different stresses and loads on the shoulder of the tire. We know that our range of slicks will work well here and the performance gain offered by the new tires this year will be perfectly suited to this circuit. We are hoping for good weather of course, but even in the event of rain, our rain tires perform very well here. We hope for a great race, whatever the conditions.”
