Dmack to supply new WRC gravel tyre at 2017 final trio

FIA World Rally Championship tyre manufacturer Dmack has launched a new gravel tyre, available to competitors at the final three rounds of the 2017 championship. Aimed specifically at WRC cars and competitors, the new DMG+22 gravel tyre will first see action at RACC Rally de Espana next month – equipping Elfyn Evans’ M-Sport World Rally Team Ford Fiesta WRC. The brand hopes to build upon its success this season, having missed victory in Argentina by 0.7 seconds, and setting fastest times on five of the six gravel rallies this season.

The new DMG+22 tread pattern has more grooves and smaller tread blocks, providing greater performance in wet, muddy and slippery conditions. Both permitted compounds are softer than their predecessors. The new soft compound GS84 is similar to that used to score 12 fastest times in Rally GB last year and will deliver enhanced performance in wet conditions. The new GH34 hard compound is more suited to the conditions expected on the final three events of the season with improved overall grip. The tyre has a reinforced, stiffer construction with a run-flat design – increasing the distance that can be driven at speed in the event of a deflation.

It will be supplied in size 205/65R15, marginally narrower that the current DMG+2 it is replacing. Like all Dmack motorsport tyres, the new DMG+22 has been designed and manufactured in the UK.

Testing opportunities with the new, more powerful 2017-sepcification WRC cars was limited last year. The ability to introduce a new specification tyre as permitted by the FIA regulations, allows the company to fine-tune the performance parameters for the remaining events in Spain, GB and Australia.

Dick Cormack, Dmack managing director, said: “Because Dmack has limited opportunities to test with the new generation WRC cars, the FIA’s joker system is a welcome way for us to develop our WRC tyres during the season and introduce new specifications to assess over the last few events. We’ve made some significant changes and are looking forward to evaluating the performance on the last three rallies.”

Fiore Brivio, Dmack technical director, said: “We’ve introduced a newly-designed tyre range and the aim is to improve the performance on loose gravel and, more than that, to gain experience in the most extreme conditions of cold and wet in GB and the hot temperatures expected in Spain and Australia. We took a step forward with our asphalt joker in Germany and aim to continue that development.”