Certainties are made to be undermined, and that concerning the pneumatic fitting of MotoGP during the Grand Prix of the Americas in Austin did not stand up to the Sprint test.
On paper, everything was clear. This year, all MotoGP riders were going to use a medium front/soft rear tire combination, as was the case successfully last year. Certainty was therefore essential, especially since the Circuit of the Americas, partially resurfaced, offers neither excellent nor uniform grip.
At Michelin, everything seemed clear, including at the end of the first day of testing, where Piero Taramasso, the manager of Michelin’s two-wheel competition, declared:
“Austin, day 1. So the track was quite slippery this morning, very little grip on the old asphalt, and also on the new asphalt. In fact, it seems the new asphalt was even more slippery because there was oil coming up on top. Anyway, this morning everyone started with soft tires at the front and medium tires at the rear. The feel was good at the front, a little soft but OK to work with, and the mids at the rear were very consistent. Then, in the afternoon, they switched to medium at the front and soft at the rear. This was the tire choice for the Sprint last year, and also for the race. It is therefore the best combination because the medium at the front gives more support and better stability. And you can tell the lap times were very fast as four drivers broke the track record. It is certain that the choice of tires for the Sprint will be medium at the front and soft at the rear. After the Sprint we will check all the data, just to confirm that it will be the same choice for Sunday's race. The weather conditions look good, it should be dry tomorrow and Sunday too. All we have to do now is wait for tomorrow's Sprint data. »
It is therefore with this medium front/soft rear combination that all the drivers competed during the Sprint. But now, at the end of it, the comments were diverse, making the choice for the lap race more uncertain.
“Austin, day 2. The morning session was pretty good, pretty positive, because there were a few clouds and the track wasn't very hot and the grip level was okay. Everyone worked with the medium front tires and the soft rear tires. This was already the choice for the Sprint from yesterday's data, and everyone chose this combination. So they worked that way, and then during qualifying we saw very, very fast lap times again. Maverick set a new record on the circuit, half a second faster than yesterday, one second compared to last year. So the morning was very positive.
And then in the afternoon, the temperature of the track increased, we had sun and 40° on the track. Everyone used the medium tires at the front and the soft tires at the rear. The front end was pretty good, pretty stable, consistent during the race. Some riders complained when they pushed too hard because they had a little movement, but nothing serious. On the back, we have very different comments. You had the first 3 or 4 riders who were very, very fast at the start and set a very fast pace. Those at the back couldn't keep up at the start, then at the end of the race they were able to come back, when the guys at the front slowed down. And yes, the condition of the track wasn't perfect, that's for sure. We also saw the tires at the end of the race, some drivers had graining on the right side, others on the left side, still others had no graining at all. The first information, the first data we received, we saw that the sprint was quite fast, 7 seconds faster than last year, so almost a second per lap. And yes, motorcycles put a lot of energy on the tire, so we saw quite a high temperature in the rear. You know, when the temperature increases, you overheat, the tendency is to overheat the tire, and then you lose grip. Performance was therefore not at its best. Many riders consider replacing the rear tire with a medium tire, because over a longer distance it is more consistent. The lap time is close to the soft tire, which is why tomorrow, with the medium rear tire, the conditions will be better because the medium is more resistant to the effect of temperature. »
This is why this morning, during warm up, we saw many drivers, including Maverick Vinales, Marc Marquez et Raul fernandez, the three fastest, try the medium tire at the rear, their choice not yet completely established for the 20-lap Grand Prix.
The final decision will certainly take place on the starting grid, depending on the ambient temperature and that of the track. The warmer it is, the more drivers will tend to choose the medium rear tire, but you shouldn't make a mistake...
