Bridgestone has renewed its sponsorship of 16-year-old Redditch rider Rob Yates, following his “breakthrough” year of 2013. Bridgestone training development manager Mark Fereday predicted that Yates is “destined for greater things in the years ahead.” The tyre brand will supply tyres and clothing as Yates competes in such competitions as the GT Cup and British Schoolboy Motorcycle Association championships.
Federal Tyres has announced its intention to showcase and celebrate its 60th anniversary at Reifen 2014. The Taiwanese manufacturer will display a full range of PCR product lines, which includes UHP, SUV, and winter tyres, as well as its extensive motorsport selection.
Michael and William Dunlop have chosen to join Metzeler for the road racing season, in a line-up that includes Guy Martin and Josh Brookes. The brand’s tyres will be present on machinery from five different manufacturers: Yamaha, Suzuki, Honda, Kawasaki and BMW.
Pirelli has nominated the tyres that will be used in the grands prix of Spain, Monaco and Canada. The latter GPs will provide the first sighting of the exclusive Formula One tyre supplier’s softest compound, the P Zero Red supersoft slick.
Endurance racing event series the 24H Series has a new title sponsor. Hankook Tire replaces Dunlop in this role and serves as exclusive partner for what is now called the 24H Series powered by Hankook. The tyre maker will also lend its name to various events held during the season, such as ‘Hankook 12H Zandvoort’, ‘Hankook 12H Hungary’, ‘Hankook 24H Dubai’ and ‘Hankook 12H Italy-Mugello’. The 24H Series includes endurance race events for GTs, touring cars and 24H Specials, and depending on weather and track conditions, Hankook will supply endurance tyres from the Ventus Race slick or rain range.
Bridgestone and motorcycle racing legend Valentino Rossi recently came together near the nine-time world champion’s home in Tavullia, Italy to collaborate on a promotional film that celebrates their winning partnership. The film showcases how both the tyre maker and Valentino ‘share’ a winning DNA, starting out from humble beginnings before going on to become leaders in the world of motorsport. Viewers are taken on a dramatic journey with both Bridgestone and Rossi, integrating historic and current footage that highlights their shared values and joint successes.
Now in the second phase of its rollout of passenger car tyres, World Rally Championship tyre supplier Dmack is seeking the right partners around the world for its Shandong Yongtai manufactured road tyres. The company has quadrupled the number of sizes in its PCR tyre range of four patterns in the first half of 2014. Tyrepress interviewed managing director Dick Cormack, communications director Glenn Patterson, and newly appointed sales director Greg Graham at the company’s office and warehouse facility in Carlisle.
Pirelli currently has an exclusive tyre supply deal with Formula One until the end of the 2016 season, but another manufacturer appears to be positioning itself for a run at single seat motorsport’s zenith. Kumho has been the sole tyre supplier to the F1 feeder series Auto GP since 2012, and has provided a product designed to provide its drivers with experience of the type of tyre management fundamental to today’s grand prix racing – the level they all aspire to.
The Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship 2014 has launched at Donington Park, with a 31-car grid, running entirely to NGTC (Next Generation Touring Car) specifications for the first time. The Goodyear Dunlop Group has extended its partnership with the BTCC, continuing its title sponsorship and exclusive tyre supply. The latest multi-year deal continues Dunlop’s association with the series, started at its inception in 1958. Fast fit network HiQ will continue as Team Championship sponsor.
This year marks the debut of the FIA World Rallycross Championship, and Cooper Tire Europe has been appointed exclusive tyre supplier. Under the terms of three-year agreement signed with the ‘FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy’, or World RX for short, Cooper will supply tyres to drivers for all 12 rounds of the 2014 season and also over the coming two years. This year’s championship begins at the Pista Automóvel de Montalegre in Portugal on 3 May.
Pirelli has announced an extension to its sponsorship involvement in Formula One. The exclusive tyre supplier will now take title sponsorship of two European grands prix too, taking place in Spain and Hungary. These two rounds will now be titled the Formula 1 Gran Premio De España Pirelli 2014 (May 8-11) and the Formula 1 […]
As the technical partner of Porsche’s endurance racing programme, Michelin played its part in the development of the new Porsche 919 Hybrid by designing specially-adapted tyres for the LMP1 class prototype. In compliance with the 2014 sporting regulations for the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) and Le Mans, tyres are size 31/71-18 on both the front and the rear. Developed on a simulator for all of the firm’s LMP1 partners, the Michelin tyres on the Porsche 919 Hybrid were refined during testing sessions conducted jointly between the two firms’ technical teams.
Pirelli has announced its first batch of 2014 season Formula One tyre compound allocations following the conclusion of its preseason testing schedule in Bahrain. The P Zero White medium tyre and the P Zero Yellow soft tyre will make four and three appearances respectively, while the P Zero Orange hard tyre will come into play in Malaysia only. The softest tyre in the range, the P Zero Red, designed to be at its most effective on the more twisty circuits made from public roads, will not be used until later in the season.
Pirelli has detailed the characteristics of its Formula One tyre 2014 specification as teams begin their final four day preseason test in Bahrain. The compounds and construction have generally been made stiffer across the range, while the Cinturato Blue wet tyre has increased its water dispersal by five litres per second.
Dunlop will test nine separate specifications of rear tyre at Australia’s Phillip Island circuit as it seeks to avoid similar problems to those that caused the Moto2 and Bridgestone-supplied MotoGP races to be shortened in October 2013. The circuit was resurfaced in 2013, and its abrasiveness caused the organisers of the Australian grand prix to […]
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