Motorland Aragón hosts the first race of a series of three in a row and is also the last round in Europe before MotoGP™ moves to Asia-Pacific for the next four events. For this 15th round of the 2022 World Championship, the Gran Premio Animoca Brands de Aragón, the Michelin Motorsport staff will make a short trip to the province of Teruel, in Spain.
The 5,077 km long anti-clockwise circuit is both interesting and complex with its 10 left turns, 7 right turns, and its longest of the two straights of 968m. With a wide variety of corners ranging from hairpins to fast curves, the MICHELIN Power Slick front tire from the Aragon Allocation has been designed to withstand all these efforts and give riders the grip, stability and confidence needed to each turn. The rear slicks have been developed to provide great stability at high speed and immediately transmit power to the ground, two important parameters for completing fast and consistent laps.
Part of the autonomous community of Aragón, the province of Teruel is renowned for its magnificent landscapes and harsh climate which can cause significant temperature swings during the day. Due to its exposed position, Motorland Aragón can experience very low temperatures in the morning. We therefore need a range of tires that can cover this thermal range. The allocation of MICHELIN Power Slicks has been selected to meet these requirements.
The front tires in Soft, Medium and Hard are all symmetrical, as is the rear Hard. On the other hand, the Soft and the Medium rear are asymmetrical with a harder left side to withstand the overloads due to the greater number of left curves whereas in 2019 the three types of rear tires were asymmetrical and the Medium was symmetrical in 2021.
Due to its proximity to the Pyrenees and the Iberian System mountain range, there is always a chance of rain. In this case, MICHELIN Power Rain tires are offered in Soft and Medium for the front and rear. The fronts are symmetrical and the rears asymmetrical with a harder left side.
About this race in Aragón, Piero Taramasso, Two-Wheel Manager at Michelin Motorsport, said: “It’s the start of a long series of tests since we then go directly to Japan and Thailand. But unlike the heat that awaits us in Asia, some test sessions had to be delayed recently in Aragón due to temperatures that were too low in the morning, sometimes below 10°C. You must therefore prepare yourself for this in terms of tire choice. »
“The Aragón track has always been a challenge for our designers due to a wide variety of corners, going from slow and tight to wide and fast. Speeds are also high on the two straights. When you combine all of these factors with the risk of extreme temperatures, it puts a lot of stress and strain on the tires. For this reason, we have defined an allocation capable of withstanding the most difficult conditions and working over a wide usage window. »
MotoGP riders will take to the track for the first two Free Practice sessions on Friday September 16. FP3 and FP4 are scheduled for Saturday before Qualifications 1 and 2. They will start this 23-lap long race on Sunday, September 18 at 14:00 p.m. local time.
