Fabio Quartararo was faultless during the first two Grands Prix contested on the same track in Jerez. Each time, the Frenchman took pole position before racing towards victory. Maverick Viñales learned the same lesson in two successive weekends, which can only shake him in his ambition to appear as the leader at Yamaha. But to achieve these superb results, you certainly need talent, but also work well with your team and know how to listen to everyone. A parameter that Michelin highlights, explaining how Fabio Quartararo was able to perfectly take advantage of his tire capital in Andalusia…
Winning a Grand Prix and dominating a meeting is no longer just about putting the handle in the corner. In addition to this, you must have strong nerves and solid thinking to develop strategies, each element of which is an essential cog to set the machine of success in motion. An approach that Michelin described by the menu by taking stock of the journey of the winner, and leader of the championnat with the maximum possible points on two occasions, fabio quartararo.
The Frenchman, but also the three other Yamaha riders and alex rins, thus implemented a recommendation of Michelin to make the soft rear tire more heat resistant in the high temperatures of Jerez. The track temperature was 59 degrees Celsius, according to official information. In this heat, tire handling is crucial.
Before the race on Sunday, Michelin informed the teams that their recommendation for the race was the soft rear tire. But not in any condition: this tire had to be broken in beforehand and have a thermal cycle behind it. The drivers were therefore invited to perform a warm-up lap, a fast lap and a slow return to the pits with this racing tire. Quarterly et Kidneys did it during the warm-up.
Both did so in the first minutes of the session. Quarterly then jumped on his second bike, then rode eight laps on a worn tire. Most teams completed a longer run with more than three laps (Ducati, Honda and KTM) or two longer runs (Aprilia) during this warm-up.
The recipe for properly cooking a tire before serving it
« From time to time we give teams recommendations that we think can help them “, a Michelin spokesperson told Motorsport-Total.com. “ But it's up to them if you want to implement them ».
When the tire starts to roll, a small film escapes from the surface. Then, you must let the tire cool before putting it back in a heating blanket. This process causes a chemical reaction in the rubber, making the tire more resistant to heat.
« You do these three turns and then you let the tire cool ", Explain Michelin . “ When it cools down, you warm it up again with the electric blanket until the race. This process makes the tire more heat resistant and can lower the temperature by up to ten degrees ». Quarterly implemented it optimally and was able to get a head start in the initial phase.
« It was a very difficult race “, declared the Frenchman. “ Usually we start with a new tire, but this time we decided to take one that had done three laps during warm-up. So we started the race with a used tire. It worked and I want to congratulate the team for it ". When El Diablo is in the details…
Finally, we will specify that according to motogp.com, the recipe recommended by Michelin had been followed by the four pilots Yamaha .
