Bridgestone have announced the tyre compounds that will be available to riders at the Gran Premi Monster Energy de Catalunya.
Bridgestone slick compounds: Front: Soft, Medium & Hard; Rear: Soft, Medium & Hard (Asymmetric)
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Hard (Main) & Soft (Alternative)
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Hard (Main) & Soft (Alternative)
The fast and challenging Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya hosts round
seven of the 2015 MotoGP season and the Montmelo circuit is set to
thrill riders and fans alike with its array of high speed corners.
The high speed sections of the 4.7 kilometre circuit see the MotoGP
riders reach high lean angles for long periods of time, which combined
with harsh braking zones and high ambient temperatures means that the
Catalan Grand Prix is one of the most severe races for Bridgestone’s
MotoGP tyres.
Such is the difference in force imposed on the right and left
shoulders of the rear tyres at this circuit, that Bridgestone provides
asymmetric rear slicks with rubber compounds up to two steps harder on
the right shoulder compared to the left. Meanwhile, the front tyre
allocation has to provide good braking stability for the hard braking
zones at the end of the straights, with excellent edge grip for the
fast, sweeping corners.
Rear tyre options for the Factory Honda and Yamaha riders at Montmeló
are the medium and hard compound rear slicks, while the rest of the
field will be allocated the soft and medium compound rear slicks. The
front slick options for this weekend are the soft, medium and hard
compound. Given its severity on tyres, the Catalan Grand Prix is one of
just four events on the calendar where the main wet tyre allocated to
riders is the hard compound specification.
Hiroshi Yamada – Manager - Bridgestone Motorsport Department:
“MotoGP returns to Spain this weekend at one of the most demanding
tracks on the calendar, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. This circuit
has fast and flowing sections that help create exciting racing and in
recent times, the 2007 and 2009 races here stand out as being
particularly memorable with the winning margin being less than one tenth
of a second. We often experience very hot weather at Montmeló and when
conditions are hot, this event becomes even more demanding for the
riders, machinery and tyres. After the race, we will be supporting teams
in a MotoGP group test at the circuit as we continue to invest in our
MotoGP programme for the 2015 season. This weekend we will also be
hosting our annual Bridgestone Kart Challenge where media teams go
head-to-head in an endurance kart race. This event continues to grow in
popularity and as always we look forward to welcoming the media and
MotoGP riders to this fun event on Friday.”
Shinji Aoki – Manager - Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development Department:
“The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya features many long, sweeping
corners where the riders reach high lean angles for long periods of
time. Most of these long-radius corners are right-handers, and overall
there are eight right turns compared to just five left-hand corners so
we provide asymmetric slicks with harder rubber on the right shoulder at
this circuit. The long-radius corners generate very high tyre
temperatures and help make this circuit one of the most severe on the
calendar for our tyres. Adding to the challenge, the grip level of the
track surface is not that high so we need to ensure the tyres have good
edge grip and braking stability, while also being resistant to
overheating. Our front tyre allocation for this circuit needs to provide
the riders with good edge grip and stability to ensure high performance
and safety in the high speed sections of this track.”
