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Since the introduction in 2009 of a single MotoGP tire supplier, the riders? lives have been greatly simplified. There was a time when, aside from working on the development of their motorcycles, riders had to perform tire development testing. These had nothing to do with the current tests, in which the manufacturer brings a certain compound to various test days throughout the season or even to GP weekends for testing.
Years ago, specific tire tests were arranged where riders had to focus solely and exclusively on testing tires. It was a very demanding job, both physically and mentally. And it was very methodical, since it required the rider?s maximum concentration and a capacity for analysis that not all possessed. That?s why tire testing was reserved only for those with certain analytic and articulation skills, because it was not enough just to be fast.
In the past tire testing was reserved only for those with certain analytic and articulation skills; it was not enough just to be fast.
In the past riders sometimes faced extreme situations, such as those experienced by Freddie Spencer in 1985, which were devastating for the American rider. Because the effort to undertake two categories at a time, developing two completely new bikes?the Honda NSR 250 and NSR 500?included an additional a special request from Michelin: develop radial tires. That was a truly exceptional situation.
?When we started winter testing in Australia in 1985, I had 150 front and rear tires to test, because we were developing radial tires for both the 500 and the 250,? explained Freddie Spencer. ?It was not unusual that the people at Michelin showed up to a race with ten new compounds. And we had to get on track with something that we had never run before. That was a lot of pressure, both for me and for the Michelin engineers.? And halfway through it, Spencer was fighting?and eventually winning?in two categories.
?When we started winter testing in Australia in 1985, I had 150 front and rear tires to test. it was not unusual that the people at Michelin showed up to a race with ten new compounds?, Freddie Spencer.
It was a long road. ?The first thing I noticed about the rear radial was that it had more grip and stability in high-speed corners, so I could open the gas sooner, something I?ve always worked on,? recounted Spencer. In fact, this objective, to open the gas earlier, was inherited from the first years with the NS 500 tri-cylinder. In those years, Spencer?s engineer Erv Kanemoto had Jerry Burgess as a mechanic, and years later remembered how important it was to accelerate early: ?We knew that Kenny [Roberts]?s bike had 10 HP more power, but we had acceleration on short straights; because it wasn?t only the final two seconds on the main straight that counted,? explained Burgess, and so Spencer learned to open the gas and accelerate earlier.
Spencer?s work in 1985 was long and intense. ?When we managed to get a rear carcass with the right compound, it began to push the front wheel because it had too much grip [Editor?s note: Does that not sound familiar?] This is a problem that we constantly face in tire development. It took us half a year to sort it out. But I remember clearly when we solved it: in Saturday?s qualifying sessions at Hockenheim [German GP] we were working with several tires, and then I came out with this new front and it gave me two seconds a lap; it was incredibly stable in braking, you could brake really hard and deep in the chicanes,? recalled Spencer.
It was a tough situation, no doubt. Knowing this, you can understand much better what Spencer suffered through in 1986, his untimely withdrawal, and his ultimate disconnection. He was completely exhausted.
?At the Germano GP held in Hockenheim, I came out with this new front and it gave me two seconds a lap!?, Freddie Spencer
Michelin A and B
Spencer enjoyed a big advantage with regard to tires in 1985, but at what price! Michelin did not take long to supply all its customers with the new radial, but its production capacity in those days was limited. The evolution of its tires did not stop, but there came a time when they could not offer that evolved product to all their riders on the 500 grid. It was then, in 1990, that they adopted the controversial policy of A and B type tires.
?Type B tires are derived from the know-how acquired during the pre-season tests, and the type A tires evolve from race to race, but since the A?s production capacity is limited, we can only manufacture them for a few riders. The rest use the B?s,? explained at that time a Michelin spokesman.
The situation where a rider had a choice of tire was not just Michelin. That was a consensual decision with the three major Japanese manufacturers. ?They have the right to choose which rider will use the evolving tires, each brand can choose the riders who will use the best compound, and we provide it also to the best riders in the second and third practice sessions,? continued the Michelin spokesman. In 1990 the riders who enjoyed the A tires were Eddie Lawson (Yamaha), Wayne Gardner (Honda) and Kevin Schwantz (Suzuki), but after Lawson?s injury at Laguna Seca (he lost the brake pads at the end of straight ?!), Wayne Rainey won the Michelin A choice for the rest of the season.
The situation where a rider had a choice of tire was not just Michelin. That was a consensual decision with the three major Japanese manufacturers.
Production capacity
Sometimes concessions were also made. Spaniard Sito Pons raced at Suzuka in the first race of the year with A tires as a reward for his 250 titles, and was fifth. But in the next race at Laguna Seca, with the B tires he was fourth in the last practice session and made a front row grid ?back then the grid lines had four riders on each?but as Mick Doohan had been faster in the previous sessions, the Australian was the one who received the A tires for the race. Sito would never be offered the A compounds again. The policy of A and B tires was not retained in the following seasons.
Sometimes the effectiveness of the tire did not depend so much on the manufacturer as on the manufacturer of the brand it supplied. In the past, when the tire manufacturer supplied a limited number of riders, it carried out a specific development work for each brand. And it was not the same thing to make tires for Honda as for Kenny Roberts? Proton KR. ?Tire manufacturers, when providing support, take into full account the production capacity of the brand. Honda makes more bikes than the Protons that I can make,? said Roberts in 2003 when he only had two Proton KR units on track.
In the past, when the tire manufacturer supplied a limited number of riders, it carried out a specific development work for each brand.
In those days, the satellite teams were paying Michelin a premium of US 150,000 per year for the provision of upgraded tires, not just standard tires produced on the basis of last year?s material. But for a team like the Team Roberts, who needed a specific product, the cost was around two million, precisely because of their reduced production. That?s why, in 2004, Roberts chose Dunlop, which was more affordable.
That is, the fewer motorcycles a brand had, the more hours of testing were needed as compared to a manufacturer with greater production capacity. And that same thing applied to a tire producer. ?We, like Bridgestone, have fewer bikes in MotoGP, so we need more instead of fewer hours of testing,? said Jeremy Ferguson, the manager of Dunlop in MotoGP in 2003.
That explains Bridgestone?s policy in MotoGP, when they went from working exclusively with Proton in 2003 to supplying Suzuki, Kawasaki and Makoto Tamada?s Honda in 2004, and in 2005 they also took on Ducati.
The fewer motorcycles a tire brand had, the more hours of testing were needed. That?s why Bridgestone went from working exclusively with Proton in 2003 to supplying Suzuki, Kawasaki and Makoto Tamada?s Honda in 2004, and in 2005 they also took on Ducati.
What were the tire tests like?
Fortunately for the riders, the strenuous work that Spencer underwent in his day was not the norm, but the work was indeed intense. Already during the MotoGP era, the tire supplier usually took advantage of a day of manufacturer testing for its riders to test tires.
Usually, the process was as follows: In a three-day test, the first day the rider and his team focused on bike set-up, using what was known as a ?reference tire? which was the starting point. And with that reference, they compared all the tires that had to be tested.
In the 2004 pre-season, for example, Sete Gibernau did some intense testing, and was requried to dedicate a lot of time to Michelin tires. In tests during December 2003 in Valencia, Sete had twelve rear tires and eight fronts to test. He did 195 laps over the course of two days at the Ricardo Tormo circuit, equaling approximately seven race distances.
In tests during December 2003 Sete Gibernau had twelve rear tires and eight fronts to test. He did 195 laps over the course of two days, equaling approximately seven race distances.
What was the process like? ?Michelin tells us what they believe are the tires that will serve as a reference, both front and back, and with that reference we compare all the other tires,? explained Gibernau. ?You have a front A tire and rear A tire, then B, C, D, E ? front and rear. I go on track with the tires and I put in five laps, plus the exit and entrance laps. Then I take the set of A tires, and I repeat the same thing. And I do the same with the B and C sets. After every three tires I return the reference, because at that point you do not know what the ?feeling? of the reference is anymore. As you have already tried three types of rubber, you need to refresh your memory of the reference to confirm what I have already tested,? explained Sete.
Each rider had his method of working, but the typical way was to refer back to the reference tire regularly, with the consequent required laps, before continuing with more tires. Tire testing required an extraordinary analytical capability. ?The job of testing tires is one of the hardest jobs there is, both physically and mentally,? Gibernau proclaimed at the time. You must be very methodical: ?Once you have chosen the set-up of the bike, you try not to touch it because if you change the ?feeling? you run the risk of not knowing if you changed the bike through the set-up or through the tires.?
?I?ve always considered that at the moment a tire doesn?t seem different from the previous one, I will say that I don?t feel a difference. That is, I let myself be guided by my feeling, and if it tells me that there is no difference, I say it. If you say something just to say it, perhaps you are providing incorrect information; Sometimes you have to say: ?It?s the same, I don?t notice anything?. It is information. You may think you?re not saying anything, but it?s information,? explained Gibernau.
Tire testing required an extraordinary analytical capability.
The process was usually was completed in three days of testing: ?The first day in the afternoon you begin to test. On the second day you continue to test, and in each test you start to discard tires. The third day, depending on how it is, you try to finish the tires or do a race simulation, which is already done with only one type of tire,? said Sete.
An easier life?
All these concerns are now history for the current MotoGP riders. At the beginning of the article we said that the life of the riders has been simplified since the arrival of a single tire supplier, especially during the Bridgestone period, but the situation changed a bit with the arrival of Michelin this past season. Marc M?rquez himself recognized this: ?Yes, this is an area that has changed the work dynamic since last year,? he exclaimed in Motorland. ?Last year you came to a circuit and you knew what front tires there were, they were always the same and you knew more or less how they worked.?
With Michelin, 2016 has been a year of transition. Accustomed to the old work dynamic, the riders were occasionally overcome by circumstances and arrived on Sunday race day with much work still to be done.
With Michelin, 2016 has been a year of transition. Accustomed to the old work dynamic, the riders were occasionally overcome by circumstances and arrive on Sunday race day with much work still to be done: ?If on Friday you have to spend it testing the tires they bring, there is not enough time; I for example hadn?t tried them all and you have to focus on that because you miss one and you get that one on Sunday, as I did at Silverstone: I could not mount the hard compound because I had not tried it, so you have to sacrifice the set-up a little to test the tires,? said Marquez.
The situation in 2016 has been somewhat circumstantial, caused by the change of supplier. In 2015, it was impossible for riders to spend more time on Michelin tests, so by the 2016 season there was still a lot of testing to do. In a way, the current regulation on testing, which limits the number of preseason tests to a very specific period and the tests between races to only five days, was conceived with the idea of simplifying work, but mainly with the aim of controlling the expenses derived from these tests.
The tough task of tire testing – PecinoGP
Spero di non aver sbagliato titolo, ho letto loco e di fretta mentre pranzavo
Years ago, specific tire tests were arranged where riders had to focus solely and exclusively on testing tires. It was a very demanding job, both physically and mentally. And it was very methodical, since it required the rider?s maximum concentration and a capacity for analysis that not all possessed. That?s why tire testing was reserved only for those with certain analytic and articulation skills, because it was not enough just to be fast.
In the past tire testing was reserved only for those with certain analytic and articulation skills; it was not enough just to be fast.
In the past riders sometimes faced extreme situations, such as those experienced by Freddie Spencer in 1985, which were devastating for the American rider. Because the effort to undertake two categories at a time, developing two completely new bikes?the Honda NSR 250 and NSR 500?included an additional a special request from Michelin: develop radial tires. That was a truly exceptional situation.
?When we started winter testing in Australia in 1985, I had 150 front and rear tires to test, because we were developing radial tires for both the 500 and the 250,? explained Freddie Spencer. ?It was not unusual that the people at Michelin showed up to a race with ten new compounds. And we had to get on track with something that we had never run before. That was a lot of pressure, both for me and for the Michelin engineers.? And halfway through it, Spencer was fighting?and eventually winning?in two categories.
?When we started winter testing in Australia in 1985, I had 150 front and rear tires to test. it was not unusual that the people at Michelin showed up to a race with ten new compounds?, Freddie Spencer.
It was a long road. ?The first thing I noticed about the rear radial was that it had more grip and stability in high-speed corners, so I could open the gas sooner, something I?ve always worked on,? recounted Spencer. In fact, this objective, to open the gas earlier, was inherited from the first years with the NS 500 tri-cylinder. In those years, Spencer?s engineer Erv Kanemoto had Jerry Burgess as a mechanic, and years later remembered how important it was to accelerate early: ?We knew that Kenny [Roberts]?s bike had 10 HP more power, but we had acceleration on short straights; because it wasn?t only the final two seconds on the main straight that counted,? explained Burgess, and so Spencer learned to open the gas and accelerate earlier.
Spencer?s work in 1985 was long and intense. ?When we managed to get a rear carcass with the right compound, it began to push the front wheel because it had too much grip [Editor?s note: Does that not sound familiar?] This is a problem that we constantly face in tire development. It took us half a year to sort it out. But I remember clearly when we solved it: in Saturday?s qualifying sessions at Hockenheim [German GP] we were working with several tires, and then I came out with this new front and it gave me two seconds a lap; it was incredibly stable in braking, you could brake really hard and deep in the chicanes,? recalled Spencer.
It was a tough situation, no doubt. Knowing this, you can understand much better what Spencer suffered through in 1986, his untimely withdrawal, and his ultimate disconnection. He was completely exhausted.
?At the Germano GP held in Hockenheim, I came out with this new front and it gave me two seconds a lap!?, Freddie Spencer
Michelin A and B
Spencer enjoyed a big advantage with regard to tires in 1985, but at what price! Michelin did not take long to supply all its customers with the new radial, but its production capacity in those days was limited. The evolution of its tires did not stop, but there came a time when they could not offer that evolved product to all their riders on the 500 grid. It was then, in 1990, that they adopted the controversial policy of A and B type tires.
?Type B tires are derived from the know-how acquired during the pre-season tests, and the type A tires evolve from race to race, but since the A?s production capacity is limited, we can only manufacture them for a few riders. The rest use the B?s,? explained at that time a Michelin spokesman.
The situation where a rider had a choice of tire was not just Michelin. That was a consensual decision with the three major Japanese manufacturers. ?They have the right to choose which rider will use the evolving tires, each brand can choose the riders who will use the best compound, and we provide it also to the best riders in the second and third practice sessions,? continued the Michelin spokesman. In 1990 the riders who enjoyed the A tires were Eddie Lawson (Yamaha), Wayne Gardner (Honda) and Kevin Schwantz (Suzuki), but after Lawson?s injury at Laguna Seca (he lost the brake pads at the end of straight ?!), Wayne Rainey won the Michelin A choice for the rest of the season.
The situation where a rider had a choice of tire was not just Michelin. That was a consensual decision with the three major Japanese manufacturers.
Production capacity
Sometimes concessions were also made. Spaniard Sito Pons raced at Suzuka in the first race of the year with A tires as a reward for his 250 titles, and was fifth. But in the next race at Laguna Seca, with the B tires he was fourth in the last practice session and made a front row grid ?back then the grid lines had four riders on each?but as Mick Doohan had been faster in the previous sessions, the Australian was the one who received the A tires for the race. Sito would never be offered the A compounds again. The policy of A and B tires was not retained in the following seasons.
Sometimes the effectiveness of the tire did not depend so much on the manufacturer as on the manufacturer of the brand it supplied. In the past, when the tire manufacturer supplied a limited number of riders, it carried out a specific development work for each brand. And it was not the same thing to make tires for Honda as for Kenny Roberts? Proton KR. ?Tire manufacturers, when providing support, take into full account the production capacity of the brand. Honda makes more bikes than the Protons that I can make,? said Roberts in 2003 when he only had two Proton KR units on track.
In the past, when the tire manufacturer supplied a limited number of riders, it carried out a specific development work for each brand.
In those days, the satellite teams were paying Michelin a premium of US 150,000 per year for the provision of upgraded tires, not just standard tires produced on the basis of last year?s material. But for a team like the Team Roberts, who needed a specific product, the cost was around two million, precisely because of their reduced production. That?s why, in 2004, Roberts chose Dunlop, which was more affordable.
That is, the fewer motorcycles a brand had, the more hours of testing were needed as compared to a manufacturer with greater production capacity. And that same thing applied to a tire producer. ?We, like Bridgestone, have fewer bikes in MotoGP, so we need more instead of fewer hours of testing,? said Jeremy Ferguson, the manager of Dunlop in MotoGP in 2003.
That explains Bridgestone?s policy in MotoGP, when they went from working exclusively with Proton in 2003 to supplying Suzuki, Kawasaki and Makoto Tamada?s Honda in 2004, and in 2005 they also took on Ducati.
The fewer motorcycles a tire brand had, the more hours of testing were needed. That?s why Bridgestone went from working exclusively with Proton in 2003 to supplying Suzuki, Kawasaki and Makoto Tamada?s Honda in 2004, and in 2005 they also took on Ducati.
What were the tire tests like?
Fortunately for the riders, the strenuous work that Spencer underwent in his day was not the norm, but the work was indeed intense. Already during the MotoGP era, the tire supplier usually took advantage of a day of manufacturer testing for its riders to test tires.
Usually, the process was as follows: In a three-day test, the first day the rider and his team focused on bike set-up, using what was known as a ?reference tire? which was the starting point. And with that reference, they compared all the tires that had to be tested.
In the 2004 pre-season, for example, Sete Gibernau did some intense testing, and was requried to dedicate a lot of time to Michelin tires. In tests during December 2003 in Valencia, Sete had twelve rear tires and eight fronts to test. He did 195 laps over the course of two days at the Ricardo Tormo circuit, equaling approximately seven race distances.
In tests during December 2003 Sete Gibernau had twelve rear tires and eight fronts to test. He did 195 laps over the course of two days, equaling approximately seven race distances.
What was the process like? ?Michelin tells us what they believe are the tires that will serve as a reference, both front and back, and with that reference we compare all the other tires,? explained Gibernau. ?You have a front A tire and rear A tire, then B, C, D, E ? front and rear. I go on track with the tires and I put in five laps, plus the exit and entrance laps. Then I take the set of A tires, and I repeat the same thing. And I do the same with the B and C sets. After every three tires I return the reference, because at that point you do not know what the ?feeling? of the reference is anymore. As you have already tried three types of rubber, you need to refresh your memory of the reference to confirm what I have already tested,? explained Sete.
Each rider had his method of working, but the typical way was to refer back to the reference tire regularly, with the consequent required laps, before continuing with more tires. Tire testing required an extraordinary analytical capability. ?The job of testing tires is one of the hardest jobs there is, both physically and mentally,? Gibernau proclaimed at the time. You must be very methodical: ?Once you have chosen the set-up of the bike, you try not to touch it because if you change the ?feeling? you run the risk of not knowing if you changed the bike through the set-up or through the tires.?
?I?ve always considered that at the moment a tire doesn?t seem different from the previous one, I will say that I don?t feel a difference. That is, I let myself be guided by my feeling, and if it tells me that there is no difference, I say it. If you say something just to say it, perhaps you are providing incorrect information; Sometimes you have to say: ?It?s the same, I don?t notice anything?. It is information. You may think you?re not saying anything, but it?s information,? explained Gibernau.
Tire testing required an extraordinary analytical capability.
The process was usually was completed in three days of testing: ?The first day in the afternoon you begin to test. On the second day you continue to test, and in each test you start to discard tires. The third day, depending on how it is, you try to finish the tires or do a race simulation, which is already done with only one type of tire,? said Sete.
An easier life?
All these concerns are now history for the current MotoGP riders. At the beginning of the article we said that the life of the riders has been simplified since the arrival of a single tire supplier, especially during the Bridgestone period, but the situation changed a bit with the arrival of Michelin this past season. Marc M?rquez himself recognized this: ?Yes, this is an area that has changed the work dynamic since last year,? he exclaimed in Motorland. ?Last year you came to a circuit and you knew what front tires there were, they were always the same and you knew more or less how they worked.?
With Michelin, 2016 has been a year of transition. Accustomed to the old work dynamic, the riders were occasionally overcome by circumstances and arrived on Sunday race day with much work still to be done.
With Michelin, 2016 has been a year of transition. Accustomed to the old work dynamic, the riders were occasionally overcome by circumstances and arrive on Sunday race day with much work still to be done: ?If on Friday you have to spend it testing the tires they bring, there is not enough time; I for example hadn?t tried them all and you have to focus on that because you miss one and you get that one on Sunday, as I did at Silverstone: I could not mount the hard compound because I had not tried it, so you have to sacrifice the set-up a little to test the tires,? said Marquez.
The situation in 2016 has been somewhat circumstantial, caused by the change of supplier. In 2015, it was impossible for riders to spend more time on Michelin tests, so by the 2016 season there was still a lot of testing to do. In a way, the current regulation on testing, which limits the number of preseason tests to a very specific period and the tests between races to only five days, was conceived with the idea of simplifying work, but mainly with the aim of controlling the expenses derived from these tests.
The tough task of tire testing – PecinoGP
Spero di non aver sbagliato titolo, ho letto loco e di fretta mentre pranzavo
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