Andrea Iannone's 2015 curve provides a first element of response to our previous question; yes, Jorge Lorenzo probably slowed down in 2015 because he was ahead, and not because of his tires.
Indeed, Andrea Iannone, although qualified on pole, was quickly overtaken by Jorge Lorenzo, which was not serious because he escaped, then in the process by Andrea Dovizioso and Marc Marquez, this which was more annoying because the last ones blocked it a little in the middle of the race. We nevertheless see that the times of the #29 improve in the second half of the race, which means that the Bridgestones were still performing well.
In 2016, Andrea Iannone achieved her best lap, and the best time of the race, in her last lap! It’s time, therefore, it’s Michelin who should be congratulated!
We will note in passing that Marc Marquez was a little more consistent than Jorge Lorenzo, which demonstrates that “the kid” really applied himself throughout the race to be able to get back on the Mallorcan driver, despite being compared to a metronome.
It is in no way the intention here to fuel any squabble between pro-Bridgestone and pro-Michelin, but only to note a few facts. Obviously, the tires from both manufacturers are of very high quality, and if the Bridgestones allowed you to attack very hard at the start of the race, the Michelins allowed you to do so at the end. All with very similar times since, despite less advanced electronics, Jorge Lorenz this year completed his 23 laps a little faster than last year, for a little less than three seconds.
The study of these times makes us even more regret that Iannone (and Rossi) were not able, for different reasons, to take part in the fight for victory...
