Ubukata “Very Confident” in Bridgestone’s New MotoGP Tyre Specs

Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development manager Tohru Ubukata has declared himself “very confident” in the new MotoGP rear medium compound tyre supplied by the series’ tyre provider for testing at Sepang, Malaysia. The manufacturer also tried out a developmental specification hard front slick over the two day testing period – the results of which will go towards determining the future direction of Bridgestone’s tyre technology, according to the company.

Ubukata stated: “This was a very valuable test for us as we were able to introduce and collect good feedback from two new specifications of tyre. The front tyre test especially was a very good study for our future development. I would like to thank all the teams and riders for being so wiling in their support and playing a crucial role in our tyre development.

“Both days of the test were dry and so the conditions improved throughout the two days. Our new medium compound rear tyre was used by most teams on the second day, and it was then that the times were fastest. Valentino [Rossi] recorded the best time, 0.3 seconds faster than his qualifying record from last year and 0.7seconds faster than his best time at the previous Sepang test. The performance of our new rear tyre is even better than last year’s medium compound rear in terms of operating range, consistency and edge grip, and I am very confident about using it this season.”

Every rider used the new rear slick tyre with the exception of San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Marco Simoncelli, who fell on Friday before he got the chance to try the new specification. Feedback was, according to Bridgestone, very positive with reports of improved edge grip and consistency.

One development specification front tyre was provided for every rider, but it was tested on-track only by Fiat Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi, Monster Yamaha Tech3’s Colin Edwards, Repsol Honda’s Andrea Dovizioso, and Rizla Suzuki’s Loris Capirossi and Alvaro Bautista, all of whom recorded a significant amount of data for Bridgestone.