Gwendal Poullennec has succeeded Michael Ellis as international director of the Michelin Guides. He began in this role yesterday and will manage the 32 editions of the Michelin guide and lead the global team of Michelin inspectors, reporting directly to Pascal Couasnon, director of gastronomic and tourist activities in the Michelin Group.
As of 5 September, Pascal Couasnon has succeeded Alexandre Taisne as director of its Mobility Experience business line, a role he will carry out in addition to his supervision of the Motorsport business line (Competition). Matthieu Bonardel, formerly director of the Michelin group’s Connected Tires department, is Michelin’s new Motorsport director. He will act in this capacity under the supervision of Couasnon.
On 28 May 1983, the late Stefan Bellof set a new outright lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschleife when he propelled his Porsche 956 around its entire 20.832 kilometres in 6 minutes 11.13 seconds. This record stood until 29 June 2018 when another Porsche – the spectacular 919 Evo – was brought into play during the 919 Tribute Tour. With Timo Bernhard behind the wheel, the Porsche hybrid sped around the Nordschleife in just 5 minutes 19.55 seconds.
Last Sunday’s 2018 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in Colorado, USA saw Romain Dumas steer his ‘Unlimited’ class, all-electric Volkswagen I.D. R Pikes Peak to victory on specifically-developed Michelin tyres.
As of 2019, fans of motorcycle racing will be able to follow an all-electric series, with protagonists in the upcoming FIM Moto-e World Cup dispensing with internal combustion entirely. Dorna Sports has announced that Michelin will act as official tyre supplier to the series.
The level of race to road technology transfer in Formula 1 is insufficient to pique Michelin’s interest in returning to the series as tyre supplier. This is the comment from Pascal Couasnon despite the tyre maker’s renewed interest several years ago.
Three seasons of exclusive tyre supply to the FIA Formula E Championship are already under Michelin’s belt and a fourth begins tomorrow. We can look forward to at least four more years of Michelin supply to the electric race series as well; the tyre maker and the FIA have announced an extension of the supply agreement up to the end of the 2020/21 season. Furthermore, while the Pilot Sport EV2 tyre launched at the start of season three returns for 2017/18, the French manufacturer confirms it is already working on tyres for the new-look next generation car, which will make its debut a year from now in season five.
Last year, Michelin made its MotoGP ‘comeback’ after an absence of eight years. Based on the experiences of the 2016 and 2017 seasons, series organiser Dorna Sports has now confirmed the tyre maker’s status as official supplier of tyres to the MotoGP World Championship for five additional seasons over and above the existing arrangement. The contract’s extension until 2023 was announced on Saturday at the Michelin Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix in the presence of Pascal Couasnon, Michelin motorsport director, and Carmelo Ezpeleta, chief executive officer of Dorna Sports.
The 2017 Dakar Rally finished on January 14, and Peugeot Sport and BFGoodrich – which returned to the world’s most famous cross-country rally after a four-year absence – monopolised the podium following the two-week event’s conclusion in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
BFGoodrich Tyres will return to the 2017 Dakar Rally as the official tyre supplier. The news marks a return of the brand as a major force in the rally, which starts in Asunción, Paraguay in January; BFGoodrich tyres will be back on a wide range of competitors’ vehicles for the first time since 2012. In support of this, the brand will roll out the BFGoodrich Dakar Service Center, through which competitors will benefit from 24/7 technical expertise. The rugged terrain and unpredictable elements racers face over two weeks and more than 5,000 miles of punishing competition across three countries is described as exactly the sort of proving ground BFGoodrich seeks. The brand that created the first radial all-terrain tyre in 1976 and has since claimed many off-road racing victories around the globe will equip roughly 300 vehicles at Dakar with race tyres designed and constructed to withstand the punishment of the terrain.
An extension of its current agreement with WRC Promoter GmbH will see Michelin continue its commitment to the Word Rally Championship until the end of 2019, and Michelin will remain the WRC’s official tyre during this period. The agreement comes as Michelin bids to secure its 300th WRC victory at RallyRACC Catalunya – Rally de España this weekend, and stands on the verge of sealing its 50th world title in the drivers’ and manufacturers’ championships.
The mission of the FIA Formula E championship is to drive technology from the racetrack to the road, and this means we should be interested in how the second generation of Michelin’s Formula E race tyre performs. The new Pilot Sport EV2’s competitive debut took place at the Hong Kong ePrix on the weekend, allowing us to finally see what Michelin’s claimed “two steps” forward” in development means in terms of performance. Pascal Couasnon, director of Michelin Motorsport, is proud of the evolutionary development present in the second-generation tyre.
Porsche’s success in the 2015 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) has been supported by its tyre partner, Michelin. The Stuttgart marque claimed top prizes in the LM P1 and LM GTE Pro classes this year, following its return to world class endurance racing in 2014 after a year of pressure from fellow Michelin runners Audi (in LM P1) and Ferrari (in LM GTE Pro). Michelin states that it provided tyres developed to meet the specific needs of its different manufacturer teams in the championship, which permits open competition between tyre firms.
Wales Rally GB completes WRC season The 2015 Wales Rally GB concluded the 13-round FIA World Rally Championship, with Sébastien Ogier and co-driver Julien Ingrassia claiming the final victory to go alongside the already claimed Drivers’ Championship in the Volkswagen Polo R WRC. Their tyre supplier, Michelin has introduced two major new tyres at the […]
Michelin says it will continue as sole tyre supplier to the FIA Formula E Championship for an additional three seasons. The World Motor Sport Council confirmed Michelin supply for season 3 (2016-2017), 4 (2017-2018) and 5 (2018-2019), subject to the finalisation of the corresponding agreements. The tyre maker has served as a technical partner to Formula E since the championship’s creation.
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