Like every evening at the end of the MotoGP test sessions, Michelin publishes its technical notes concerning the past day. But this evening, in addition to the feedback provided by the drivers and technicians, the French firm provides some details on the tires already preheated, a subject that is reappearing in Germany after having already sparked grumbling early last year...
Friday :
Dry and hot weather today at the Sachsenring. Track temperatures were 35°C in the morning and 45°C during FP2.
All 6 tire specifications were tested today (3 front and 3 rear).
The track is not heavily used due to local noise regulations, so grip levels are rather low due to the green surface combined with the high temperatures. However, once the bikes have been around for a while, the improvement between sessions we see is often greater here than at other circuits.
FP1: The Medium Front / Medium Rear combination was used to start and it was the optimal solution at that time. The general feeling was quite positive, but the tires tended to lose potential as the laps were completed. During this session, the soft front tire was judged to be too soft. The hard rear worked well, but the grip level was lower than average and there was a tricky warm-up period to deal with.
FP2: The Hard front and Hard rear combination was chosen this afternoon with the change in track conditions, and most drivers were able to improve their morning times despite the higher track temperatures. With these tires there was more support at the front and better stability at the rear. The front worked well for all and the rear was liked more by the more aggressive riders/bikes. The Medium front gives better feedback and turns are more direct. Several riders tried the Medium rear again during this session and their feedback was clear – that it offered more grip and better traction, but this will need to be validated over the 30 laps of the race. Finally, for the timed attack at the end of the session, the Soft rear offered remarkable levels of additional grip, and it was using this tire that Pecco broke the circuit lap record, with a new best time of 1.20.018.
On Saturday:
Clarification:
Some drivers made comments yesterday at Sachsenring about preheated tires. Here are a few points to hopefully clarify this situation:
Pre-heated tires are those which were allocated to a driver during the weekend, and which were heated by the team in anticipation of their use, but which were not subsequently used. These tires are then returned to Michelin and are reallocated to this same driver at a later date. The reason they are reallocated is because it is neither responsible nor sustainable to discard new, unused tires.
Teams only receive preheated tires that they have heated themselves. Therefore, drivers/teams who manage their allocation well and do not overheat tires will receive fewer preheated tires in future races. As teams are responsible for managing their own tire allocation, they know exactly how long tires have been heated and to what temperature.
There is a limit to the number of preheated tires each team can receive each weekend: Front tires (2 of each compound) Rear tires (soft x2, medium x1, hard x1).
Technical notes:
Even warmer today than yesterday….. 36°C in the morning and 50°C in the afternoon during FP4.
Track conditions were good during FP3, with a new lap record on the circuit and 5 drivers going under 1min 20sec. However, the track was much hotter during FP4 and qualifying, leading to lower grip levels.
Riders generally focused on the stroke choice, which is between Medium and Hard at the front, and the same at the rear. Feedback confirms that the Hard front works well on this track and in these conditions, with good braking support. The general feeling is also good but the level of grip at maximum lean angles is lower compared to the Medium. For the rear, it is also the Hard specification which works well as it offers good consistency, and greater stability than the Medium option, which will also be a racing solution thanks to its high grip levels which help a lot when braking. The final choices of the drivers will be confirmed after tomorrow morning's warm-up.
