Upcoming demanding Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Catalan Grand Prix

May 20, 2024 Michael Le Pard News Comments Off on Upcoming demanding Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Catalan Grand Prix

Pirelli extends tyre allocation for the Catalan GP

For the demanding Montmelò circuit, riders will have a greater number of tyres available for some of the solutions and additional compounds: in Moto2 the hard SC3 solution for both wheels, in Moto3™ the development rear C1096 specification
The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, which will host the Catalan Grand Prix next weekend, is a rather demanding track for the tyres given that, in certain conditions, it can greatly accentuate wear due to low grip levels available and its layout which, especially in the final sector, is very technical and requires measured tyre management. For this reason, in addition to the standard 2024 allocation, the Moto2™ class will also be able to count on the SC3 (hard) option both for the front (already allocated in the American and French GPs) and for the rear, while the Moto3™ will have the development rear with C1096 (hard) specification at its disposal, also already present in the two GPs mentioned earlier and in the one in Qatar.
In addition, in some cases the quantity of tyres available to riders for each compound has also been increased, allowing them to use a greater number over the course of the weekend.
This allocation will offer the teams the opportunity to have a wide range of solutions capable of dealing with the pitfalls that the Catalan circuit can present.

More compounds and more tyres to offer riders a wide choice
 
“We know the Montmelò circuit well because we have raced there for many years also with WorldSBK. It is a track that is in some ways unpredictable, with little grip, which can change a lot based on the temperatures of the asphalt and which can also be very aggressive towards the tyres, accentuating their wear. For this reason, as a precaution, we have preferred to make harder solutions available to the riders, such as the front and rear SC3 for Moto2, which could prove to be precious allies. In addition, we have also increased the number of units available to the riders for each compound and, consequently, the number of tyres that by regulation they can use during the weekend. In this way, teams and riders will have a wide range of choices and will be more free to use the solution they prefer throughout the weekend without worrying about having a sufficient number of tyres. Regardless of the solutions chosen, this is still a track that must be approached with intelligence: from a race perspective, the search for the best setup and tyre management is fundamental for success”.

· Dedicated allocation: compared to the standard 2024 allocation, the SC3 (hard) compounds are added as options for the front and rear for Moto2™ and the development C1096 (hard) specification for the rear for Moto3™. The number of tyres available to each rider is also increased. In Moto2™ for the front the quantity of SC2 goes from 6 to 8 while the SC3 is available in 6 pieces per rider, for the rear the quantity of SC0 goes from 6 to 8 and, as for the front, there are 6 tyres in SC3 compound. In Moto3™, for all solutions the available quantity of tyres is increased to 8, in addition to the 6 pieces of the rear C1096.

· Allocation vs use: the number of tyres that Pirelli makes available to each rider is always greater than those that can be used by regulation in a race weekend. As a rule, each rider in both classes can use a maximum of 17 slick tyres, 8 front and 9 rear. For Barcelona, given that there are additional compounds compared to the standard allocation which includes two front and two rear specifications, the number of tyres that a rider can use is also larger: specifically in Moto2™, riders can use 1 more front tyre (9 instead of 8) and 1 more rear (10 instead of 9), for a maximum of 19 slicks, given the presence of the SC3 specifications for the front and rear. In Moto3™ they can use 1 more rear (10 instead of 9) due to the presence of the C1096 rear, for a total of up to 17 usable slick tyres.
 
· Challenging track: the Circuit of Catalunya in Montmelò is a track that offers poor levels of grip, particularly in high temperatures. The lack of grip can lead to high consumption, therefore requiring good tyre resistance, but also optimized bike set-ups and careful tyre management in the race.

· Characteristics of the track: the facility was inaugurated ahead of the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games and since then it has hosted the motorcycling Grand Prix annually. 4,657 metres long with 16 curves, its track is characterized by an often-irregular road surface and subject to the influence of dirt coming from the nearby countryside and deposited by the wind. It is one of the circuits most appreciated by riders for its variety between violent braking and wide, fast corners, as well as the straight which, with its 1,047m length, is often the scene of new top speed records.
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