Jorge Lorenzo Opens 2016 MotoGP Season With A Win And New Track Record

As evidenced by Jorge Lorenzo's victory and lap record performance
at Losail International Circuit QATAR, in the first MotoGP race of
the 2016 season, he seems to be pretty pleased with the series'
official tire supplier, Michelin. The Movistar Yamaha rider didn't
just set the lap record once, but twice during the race. For eight
years Casey Stone held the lap record with a time of 1m55.153s, but
then on lap 16 Lorenzo put down a 1m55.109s lap and then set an
even faster record on lap 22 with a time of 1m54.927s.
Michelin Motorsport is most likely very happy to be part
of Lorenzo's record achieving performance as well; after a seven
year hiatus, this is the company's first year back as the official
motorcycle
tire supplier of the MotoGp World Championship. Michelin has
been involved with many wins and titles over the years, the company
first claimed success in the premier-class of Grand Prix racing
more than 30 years ago at the Isle of Man TT with Australian rider
Jack Findlay. Of the 118 MotoGP races that took place from 2002 to
the end of 2008 (when Bridgestone was announced as the sole premier
class spec tire supplier) Michelin won 83 races in the premier
class.
While MotoGP motorcycle tires are specifically designed and tested
to deliver the absolute best performance for the world's best
riders on premiere tracks across the globe, Michelin's MotoGP
involvement does carry some significance for the average
rider-especially with the series now running a 17" wheel format.
"Our policy of carrying over our technologies from track to street
fits perfectly with the new technical regulations," stated Michelin
Motorsport's Director Pascal Couasnon. So basically, everything
Michelin learns from its involvement with the best and fastest
riders in the world it can apply that knowledge to real world
applications into its tires for the daily rider. And the fact that
MotoGP has gone to 17" wheels-the common sport bike wheel
size-means it will be easier for Michelin to put their learned
technologies into a streetable tire.
Like the entire MotoGP field, Lorenzo had a select group of five
Michelin tires to
choose from; soft, medium, and hard Power Slicks for the front and
soft and medium rear Power Slicks. Lorenzo chose to go with the
hard front and soft rear which proved to be a perfect combo to seal
the opening win and stamp a new track record. "I tried the hard
compound during warm-up but it didn't feel right and I finally
opted for the soft which turned out to be the best solution. It was
this choice that allowed me to establish a new track record,"
Lorenzo stated. "It was important to get the year off to a strong
start. A podium would have been nice; victory is even better!"
The MotoGP circuit heads to Argentina April
1-3 where the riders will race the Termas de RÃo Hondo course. If
you have a keen eye you may be able to spot which of the 12 spec'd
tires the riders are employing. Michelin has provided this chart to
help spectators try to identify what's keeping the riders on the
track.
Hahaha. You probably can't tell what's what from that image, can
you (don't worry I can't either--sad emoji)? Now try deciphering
the side wall markings at 130+mph.
It breaks down like this:
Michelin Power Slick-
Front/Rear:
Soft-white stripe
Medium-no stripe
Hard-yellow stripe
Michelin Power Intermediate
Front/Rear:
Intermediate-grey stripe
Michelin Power Rain-
Front/Rear
Soft-blue stripe
Hard-no stripe