The entire range of Michelin tires was used today at the Sachsenring (Germany), during the GoPro Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland, to deal with the changing conditions which offered a magnificent race won by Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) after a pit-stop very brave.
The torrential morning rains forced the drivers to put on the latest MICHELIN Power Rain for the start of this 30-lap race. Two new tires were developed and manufactured after the last Assen event, with a soft version initially available in the weekend's tire allocation. But with the weather predicted to be cold and wet for race day, Michelin made the decision to send a super-soft version overnight that the drivers could test during the morning warm-up. At the start of the race, 16 motorcycles were equipped with them, the other six being fitted with soft tires.
At the green light, Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) surprised everyone to lead during the first two laps, before being overtaken by Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), himself overtaken by Danilo Petrucci (OCTO Pramac Yakhnich). Petrucci dominated for seven rounds before falling in 11e round. Dovizioso then regained first place on a quickly drying track. What followed was a great fight between the men and against the elements, before the drivers plunged into the pit lane to change their mounts, then shod with tires better suited to the conditions. Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team) was the first to ride on MICHELIN Power Inters, while Marquez made a daring but wise choice to switch to MICHELIN Power Slicks on a still wet track off the line. The Spaniard overcame his opponents to achieve a superb victory, his 7e consecutive to the Sachsenring in all categories.
The fight for the other two podium places intensified after the bike changes and the 93 spectators got their money's worth. Cal Crutchlow – also on slicks (LCR Honda) – delivered a superb performance to take 213e place and win the First Independent Team Rider award. Dovizioso, equipped with an Inter front tire and a slick rear tire, finally took 3e place after overtaking Scott Redding (OCTO Pramac Yakhnich, in Inter) on the line. Iannone finished 5e ahead of Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) wearing slicks. Winner at Assen, Jack Miller (Estrella Galicia 0.0 Marc VDS) took 7e place with his slicks. Rossi crossed the finish line in 8e position on his Inter tires, ahead of Hector Barbera (Avintia Racing, Inter front and rear slick) and Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini, Inter). This wide diversity of tire choices has proven the effectiveness of the entire Michelin range.
MotoGP marks its summer break. The Michelin men will analyze the data and performances from the first half of the season before the resumption of the 2016 championship at the Red Bull Ring (Austria), Sunday August 14.
Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda Team:
“It was an ideal race to test the tires! We left on rain tires. After the Assen experience, Michelin improved the front tire which worked well. I had opted for the extra soft at the start, it was probably a little too soft for the conditions, but that was my mistake. In this first part of the race, we started in the wet and the track dried out. I was a little worried when changing bikes, because on slick, on the portions that are still wet, it's really dangerous. Intermediates were an option, but I preferred to go straight to slicks. It was the best strategy. I felt comfortable all weekend and it's great to score another 25 points today. »
Nicolas Goubert - Deputy Director, Technical Director and MotoGP Program Supervisor at Michelin Motorsport:
“First of all, on behalf of Michelin, I would like to offer my most sincere condolences to the families bereaved by the tragedy in Nice this week. Michelin is a French company and we were very moved by the minute of silence observed by the entire MotoGP family at the Sachsenring today. »
“As for racing, where do I start? For us, the weekend was very difficult due to the extreme weather conditions, from a very cold track on Friday, to the heat yesterday, heavy rain and unstable conditions today. We had to deal with everything and we are happy with the behavior of all our tires. Looking at the forecast on Thursday, we made the decision to run softer front rain tires than those in our initial package, and it worked very well at the start of the race. The riders then made different tire choices when changing bikes and we saw for the first time this season Inter front tires in the race. This will give us important data. Marc's decision to go straight to slicks was a brave one, but it was the best one for him. His driving in these conditions was one of the most beautiful I have seen. During the summer break, we will define the direction to take for tire development in order to continue to offer our drivers the best options for all conditions. »
