In his racecard, Michelin seems to agree with Brembo on the fact that the main characteristic of the Termas de Rio Hondo track is that it offers very limited grip.
To overcome this during the Argentine Grand Prix which bears its name, the French manufacturer decided to present an allocation “similar” to that used during the last edition, in 2019.
Similar but not exactly equal, since if the soft and medium fronts are identical reproductions of those which were used in 2019, the hard front is from a 2022 model.
The rear tires benefit from 2019 rubber on current casings, except for the hard rear which corresponds to the 2019 medium, casing and rubber included.
After a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the Michelin Motorsport team returned to South America, to Termas de Rio Hondo, Argentina, for the third round of the season, the Gran Premio Michelin de la República Argentina, one of the big logistical challenges of the MotoGP championship™.
After a very long break of 15 years, MotoGP returned to Argentina in 2014 at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit, in the province of Santiago del Estero, in the north of the country, which previously hosted the Gran Premio de la República Argentina organized in Buenos Aires.
This 4,806 km long circuit has always been tough on the drivers, the machines and especially the tires. Its abrasive surface, combined with high temperatures at this time of year, and the significant constraints imposed by the five left turns and nine right turns, plus the long straight of 1078 m, mean that Michelin tires are subject to the biggest efforts of the season.
The tire allocation of MICHELIN Power Slicks, which includes a Soft, a Medium and a Hard for the front and rear, has been carefully selected to withstand all these efforts. All tires are symmetrical. This choice was dictated by the uniform distribution of stresses on the tire at each lap. In case of rain, which happened often at Termas de Rio Hondo, the MICHELIN Power Rain are offered in Soft and Medium for the front and rear, the rears being asymmetrical with a harder right side.
Piero Taramasso, Michelin Motorsport Two-Wheel Manager: “It’s the Michelin Grand Prix of Argentina, so it makes us particularly happy and proud to be there. This gives us the opportunity to demonstrate the performance of the tires and the Michelin brand to the many bikers and MotoGP™ fans in South America. The Termas circuit has always been a challenge for us since our return to MotoGP™, notably with unpredictable weather which prevented us from having a completely dry weekend to test the performance of the MICHELIN Power Slicks. In addition, the level of grip on the circuit has been deteriorating since its resurfacing in 2014. This year, our allocation is similar to that of 2019, but the tires have been developed in terms of architecture and rubber to withstand even better road conditions. difficult track. »
