MOTORSPORT
You’ve probably heard by now that at the end of February Dunlop announced the launch of its Sport Maxx Race and Sport Maxx RT products at Spain’s Ascari Race track. Designed to help some of the world’s fastest cars perform, Dunlop says the Race iteration will be fitted to key models such as the Mercedes SLS and C63 AMG Black Series, Audi’s TT RS and R8, the Porsche 911 GT3 and the BMW M5. But why develop a new sports car-orientated tyre?
Pirelli Tyre’s UK motorsport manager believes that Dorset and Hampshire’s Rallye Sunseeker “marks a new beginning for the British Rally Championship”. While Ford announced that it would join the manufacturers’ championship, the tyre-maker was providing tyres to two-wheel drive vehicles – the only cars eligible for points in this year’s series for the first time since the 1990s. Ireland’s Mark Donnelly took the spoils at an enthralling curtain-raiser, set in the Wareham and Ringwood forest complex close to the rally base in Bournemouth, Dorset.
Bridgestone completed its first round of pre-season MotoGP testing in early February, taking its latest hard and extra-hard front, and medium and hard rear compounds to Sepang, Malaysia. The tyre supplier also took the opportunity to meet with series organiser Dorna’s safety advisor, Loris Capirossi, who was there to “continue the good work Bridgestone and I started at Valencia last November”, in his words. He also scotched media reports of critical comments he was alleged to have made about Bridgestone’s rubber, saying he has “shared a long and positive relationship” with the supplier. “[In] Malaysia we made our plans for the season and most importantly for this time, we discussed the 2012 specification tyres and how the riders’ are responding to them,” he told the media.
2011’s Rally of the Year, Rallye Sunseeker in Dorset marks the opening round of the 2012 MSA British Rally Championship. The rally begins with a ceremonial start at Poole Quay at 18:00 on Friday 24 February, with the main action taking place on 25th, during which crews will tackle 12 stages over 66 miles in the Wareham and Ringwood Forest complex. Pirelli, the official tyre sponsor since 2007, will supply asphalt and gravel specification tyres to the Ford, Citroën, Renault and Skoda crews throughout the prestigious six-round championship.
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Europe’s Avon Tyres will be the official tyre supplier to the European GT4 Cup and Dutch GT4 Championship for the next three years. Avon has ramped up its GT tyre products since its introduction into the British GT Championship in 2006, and the brand’s representatives say the latest contract shows its boosted reputation as a “world class supplier” of the product. All tyres for both championships will be manufactured in the UK at Avon Tyres Motorsport’s headquarters in Melksham, Wiltshire.
Russia’s largest petrochemical company, Sibur Holding JSC, may be out of the tyre business after selling OAO Sibur-Russian Tyres to a group of investors late last year – yet the firm, like many of its former tyre-making counterparts, has decided upon motorsport sponsorship as a means of promotion. On 20 February Sibur announced the signing of a deal with the Caterham F1 team, and in doing so has become the first-ever Russian Formula 1 team partner. The company also confirmed it will continue its partnership agreement with Russian driver Vitaly Petrov, who has left Renault to join the Caterham team this year. Under the current agreements, the Sibur logo will feature on Caterham’s F1 cars and on Petrov’s race suits throughout the 2012 season.
Cooper Tires has added to its line-up with the recent introduction of two new options in its popular Discoverer range; the Discoverer S/T MAXX and Discoverer A/T3. Cooper has worked closely with Kings Road Tyres, its appointed distribution partner, for more than 10 years and Tim Bader, KRT’s purchasing and marketing manager, commented that the new options are set to make a big impact in the trade:
Pirelli has launched its fifth year of partnership with the GT Cup at Brands Hatch. Drivers used Pirelli’s intermediate tyres in damp conditions on the day, using the Indy circuit – the shortest configuration of the track – to test high-speed stability in fast corners such as Paddock Hill Bend and traction coming out of the slow hairpin at Druids. The GT Cup’s first round takes place at Donington Park from 28-29 April.
Pirelli has accumulated several thousand kilometres on Spain’s Jerez circuit in private and official Formula One testing, but the Italian tyre supplier will be hoping for better weather as it moves north to the Circuit de Catalunya. A fortnight ago, varied conditions made testing a challenge, as teams try to simulate the conditions they will face when the F1 season commences in Australia on 16 March. Pirelli has announced that the P Zero White medium compound will be available alongside the P Zero Yellow soft compound, and with the weather colder than expected in Jerez, the former has proved the most popular tyre for testing. Pirelli has also nominated the P Zero White for China and Malaysia, the second and third Grands Prix respectively.
Pirelli has supplied its first MINI Challenge event at the MotorSport Vision Racing Media Day. Hosted by Brands Hatch on Tuesday, former MINI Challenge champion Lee Allen in a Pirelli-branded MINI John Cooper Works among others demonstrated the tyres to gathered media representatives. For the Challenge’s drivers, this was the first chance to try out the new Pirelli tyres, and thanks to damp morning conditions were able to sample both the Pirelli 225/625-17 WH wet tyre and the 225/625-17 DH slick tyre; the latter used as the track dried out in the afternoon. There are two classes within the MINI Challenge: the turbocharged JCW class and the Club class. The Pirelli RX5 15” intermediate tyre is also used for the less powerful Club class. The first round of the championship takes place at Silverstone on 14 April.
Tomorrow’s tyre industry is not only shaped by external influences such as legislation and growing environmental awareness; the tyres we will drive on in future are today’s breakthrough developments. Each year the most outstanding of the previous 12 months’ crop of innovations are acknowledged by the Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence. This year’s awards ceremony was held on the evening of 15 February in connection with the Cologne, Germany-based Tire Technology Expo. Five winners were chosen by the 21-member industry panel – Bridgestone, Michelin, Goodyear, Rhein Chemie and Environmental Waste International.
Marangoni has agreed a three-year title sponsorship deal with the UK-based Production BMW Championship. The race cars, all based on BMW 3 Series models, will feature significant Marangoni and Kwik Fit branding and will race on 195/50 R15 82V Marangoni Zeta Linea Sport tyres, a track oriented version of Marangoni’s popular Zeta Linea road spec tyre.
Taking into consideration that Marangoni tyres are only available through Kwik Fit in the UK, the race series will become known as The Marangoni Tyres Production BMW Championship, in association with Kwik Fit. Kwik Fit has reportedly “fully embraced” this new agreement and will be supplying the tyres to all race competitors.
Federal has announced that it will continue its motorsport activities through the supply of the 2012 RACEceiver US Legend Cars series, which runs from 19 February until 6 October. It has previously used its 595 ultra high performance tyre in the series in the 2010 and 2011 seasons. “Federal Tire has a lengthy and rich heritage in the leading motorsport categories across the world; we are proud and excited to enter the new chapter of such a promising partnership with US Legend Cars to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the fun and affordable racing series in which anyone can compete,” commented Taz Yeh, project manager of Federal Motorsports.
Michelin is running a competition through its Facebook page to find motorsport fans’ favourite British racing circuits. Respondents have the chance to win VIP tickets to Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) events held at their nominated circuits, where the Michelin supplied Formula Renault UK and Renault Clio Cup will take place.
Four British artists chosen in partnership by Cooper Tire Europe and the UK’s leading art store, Castle Galleries, have created visual artworks starting with tyres as effective canvasses. Based on three themes relevant to Cooper Avon products and their motorsport heritage, the artists spent 257 man hours crafting the pieces, which will be displayed at Artica Galleries, South Molton Street, London until 17 February 2012.
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