Preseason IRTA Test Jerez: Bridgestone Debrief

Pre-season testing for the 2012 MotoGP season wrapped up after the conclusion of the Jerez test and a late dash by Repsol Honda’s Casey Stoner in the final hour of play saw the Australian stand supreme at the top of the timesheets once again.

Jerez was the first time all twenty-one riders campaigning the upcoming MotoGP season shared the same circuit , but it made little difference to the reigning champion as his time of 1:38.780 ensured he was the fastest man at each of the IRTA pre-season tests. Stoner’s late burst of speed saw him depose Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo into second place, though the 2010 champion’s best time of 1:38.953 showed the potency of the 2012 M1 and the promise of some exciting duels throughout the upcoming season.

The factory Honda and Yamaha teams locked out the top four positions in the standings with Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa third quickest ahead of Ben Spies, while Monster Yamaha Tech3’s Cal Crutchlow continued his excellent pre-season form to finish the final day fifth ahead of Ducati’s Valentino Rossi.

Following data analysis from the second Sepang test, Bridgestone developed a new specification front tyre for Jerez and evaluation of this new front tyre took place alongside continued testing of the 2012 specification front tyre. The data and rider feedback acquired from the experimental front tyre will now be analysed at Bridgestone’s Technical Centre in Japan in support of its ongoing development programme.

As the sun sets on pre-season testing for another year, Bridgestone now shifts its focus to the first race of 2012 which will take place under lights at Qatar’s Losail International Circuit from April 5-8.

Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Medium & Hard; Rear: Soft & Medium
Weather: Fri: Dry, Sat: Wet/Dry, Sun: Dry. Ambient 17-23°C; Track 17-40°C (Bridgestone measurement)

Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department
“I am very pleased to have completed our pre-season development programme and we leave Spain having achieved all our technical objectives. At the Sepang tests we met our target of delivering improved warm-up performance, enhanced rider feel and a wide operating temperature range in hot conditions, and at Jerez we wanted to achieve the same performance criteria in cooler conditions. In this regard, the outcome was very positive with riders giving excellent feedback on how the 2012 specification tyres performed in the cooler temperatures and so we approach the season full of optimism.

“As part of our fundamental tyre development programme, we also brought an experimental front tyre for all riders to test at Jerez and we gathered valuable data on this new development. On behalf of Bridgestone I would like to thank all the teams and riders for their efforts in helping us achieve our goals and I look forward to what I am sure will be an exciting season for MotoGP.”

Source: Bridgestone Motorsport