SRI announces 2018 Falken, Dunlop motorsports schedule

Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd. (SRI) has finalised its motorsports schedule for 2018, and plans for this year will see it continue supplying its Falken and Dunlop brand tyres to various two-wheel and four-wheel race categories.

Four-wheel motorsports activities

Falken: The Falken tyre brand will once again be present at the ADAC Zurich 24-Hour Race at the Nürburgring. Team Falken Motorsports will continue last year’s successful format and compete with the Porsche 911 GT3R and BMW M6 GT3 that placed eighth overall in last year’s race. In addition, SRI will supply Falken tyres to Team Subaru Tecnica International as it competes in the SP3T Class.

Dunlop: In Japan, the highlight of SRI’s activities will be the Super GT, one of the country’s most popular four-wheel racing tournaments. In this series, it will supply Dunlop tyres for four cars driven by four teams – Team Nakajima Racing, which won the sixth race of last year’s tournament in the GT500 Class, as well as three teams competing in the GT300 Class. SRI will also supply tyres to various racing teams competing for the title in their respective classes in a wide range of race categories, including the All-Japan Rally Championship, the All-Japan Gymkhana Championship, the All-Japan Dirt Trial Championship, All-Japan Karting Championship.

Meanwhile, SRI will support the cultivation of young drivers by supplying ‘one-make’ tyres for such beginner-oriented tournaments as FIA Formula 4. It will also sponsor and supply Dunlop tyres for open-participation races such as the Toyota Gazoo Racing 86/BRZ Race and the Toyota Gazoo Racing Rally Challenge.

Overseas, SRI will supply Dunlop tyres for ‘one-make’ such as Formula 4 racing in Chile.

Two-wheel motorsports activities

SRI will supply Dunlop tyres for the Moto2 and Moto3 Classes in the FIM Grand Prix World Championship, which is one of the world’s premier two-wheel racing tournaments. Bolstered by last year’s victory, the tyre maker is now aiming to win its fourth consecutive FIM Endurance World Championship. In motocross racing, SRI aims for a ninth consecutive year of the Dunlop brand’s domination of all classes in the AMA Supercross Championship in America, as well as the title of World Champion in the MXGP.

In Japan, SRI will support top teams and individual riders as they aim for titles in a wide range of tournaments, including the All-Japan Road Race Championship, the All-Japan Motocross Championship, the All-Japan Trials Championship and the Japan Enduro Championship. Dunlop tyre will also be supplied to six teams competing in the Suzuka 8 Hours Road Race, which is the largest motorbike race in Japan and the final race in the FIM Endurance World Championship.

Furthermore, Dunlop tyres will be supplied as ‘one-make’ tyres for 250cc motorcycles competing in increasingly popular road races held for up-and-coming racers throughout the world.