Michelin has made its third trip on to Spanish soil as the 2017 MotoGP™ World Championship heads to MotorLand Aragón for round 14 of this exciting season and the Gran Premio Movistar de Aragón.
The 5,077m circuit is a very technical layout with 10 left and 7 right turns, a long straight of almost one-kilometre, tight hairpins, flowing turns and a whole host of other interesting and demanding features designed to keep the riders on their toes and spectators absorbed in the action. The circuit is also a big challenge for Michelin as it needs to supply tyres which can cope with all these demands and can work in the cooler conditions that could be experienced at this exposed track in the mornings.
The range of MICHELIN Power Slick tyres have been designed to meet these criteria and following the company’s first visit to the circuit in 2016, valuable data has been used from that event to make compounds that will give optimum performance on the medium-abrasive Spanish asphalt. The front tyres in soft, medium and hard compounds will all be of a symmetric design, whilst the rears – also in soft medium and hard – will feature an asymmetric shape with a harder left-hand-side to cope with the extra excesses experienced through the increased number of left turns.
MotorLand Aragón staged its first MotoGP race in 2010 and the modern complex that now stages the event has its roots firmly established in the street-racing era when races were held in the nearby town of Alcañiz, between 1963 and 2003. Its location in the rocky and sometimes deserted Teruel province gives rise to knowledge in Spain of an area with a harsh local climate and with rain a possibility the MICHELIN Power Rain tyres in soft and medium front compounds, along with extra soft and soft rear compounds will be available if wet weather makes an appearance.
Aragón action gets underway for Michelin at MotorLand on Friday 22nd September with the first two Free Practice sessions. Two more free sessions will take place the following day, with qualifying for the 23-lap race taking place on Saturday afternoon.
Piero Taramasso – Michelin Motorsport Two-Wheel Manager: “Aragón was a challenge for us last year, as the mornings were very cold and it was the first time we had ever visited the track, so we had a lot to learn. We gathered a huge amount of data from the weekend and it helped us to improve the tyres for conditions like that. The weather at Aragón can be cool due to its location and it’s also a very technical circuit, with a medium abrasive surface, so it is a track that needs special attention. During the race last year, durability and consistency were very good and we are aiming to give the riders the tyres they need to push on even more this year. We have had some good results this season and we want to continue with this momentum, for sure it will be another exciting fight for the championship before the three consecutive overseas races”.