MotoGP, the fastest 2 wheel sport in the world, is facing a real problem in last few years, LACK OF NEW RECORDS.
Not that the riders are not of that caliber any more, obviously we have Marc Marquez, Maverik Vinales, Quartarao, Pol and Valentino Rossi, the Doctor on the track, so what has changed?
Michelin became the Tyre supplier in MotoGP in 2016 and still Bridgestone has track records for about half of the tracks on the calendar.
Michelin has race records at Jerez, Le Mans, Losail, Misano, Mugello, Sachsenring, Sepang and Valencia. Bridgestone holds race records at Aragon, Assen, Brno, COTA, Motegi, Phillip Island and Termas.
In a sport like MotoGP where technology is advancing at such fast pace, five years is really a very long time to keep your records. So what is the reason for that?
2 major reasons I can think of:
Firstly, Michelin Tyres, although Michelin’s front slick precedes its rear slick whenever MotoGP riders take to the track, in terms of performance the front lags behind the rear.
If you have been watching MotoGP closely, everything has improved a lot: engines, frames, suspension, brakes, electronics(specially when factory electronics were used before spec ECU were introduced by MotoGP, another nail in the coffin) but the tyres are still just two hoops of rubbers trying to bond with asphalt to give riders the grip they want without much degradation and in my point of view the Michelins, specially the front, has failed to meet the expectations.
The point here is not that MotoGP governing body is doing something to hurt any team, the rich ones, rather they are trying to bring everyone on the same page. The rich teams earlier had the resources to build/procure items in different sizes/specs and test them to get the best results while poorer teams had very limited options and hence they usually lagged in performance as well. Let's take tyre rims for example, earlier rich teams had 4-5 different sizes of tyre rims for both Front and Rear so they can adjust their bike according to each track to get far better results but now with new rules, they have only 2 choices for each front and the rear and so everyone have equal opportunities and the impact due to many rim sizes has diminished. Also read: Who will win in 2020: Top Contenders
That's exactly why we have already seen 3 different manufacturers winning in 5 races this year. Bravo to Dorna for that. But as they say everything comes with a price and which is what exactly has happened in past few years. Riders and Manufacturers have very limited space to work upon for improvement of their bikes and with such restrictions, manufacturers these days are more focused on setups which can give them edge in full race rather than one lap records and that exactly has been our topic today, Less Records being broken these days in MotoGP. Also read: Marquez's absence, what Dovi has to say..!
This year's big challenge in MotoGP is the 2020 rear slick, which is causing issues for some bikes and riders but not for others. That's always the way - every tyre will always suit some better than others. Whoever best solves teh riddle fo the 2020 rear will most likely win the 2020 world championship.
Inspired by Max Oxley's post in Motorsport.
Also read: SanMarinoGP: What to Expect!!
Nice read..
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