After the Styrian GP, pictures of the problem with Miguel Oliveira’s front tire that forced him to retire were circulating on the internet. In these photos it can be clearly seen that two large parts of the tread have broken off, which makes it impossible for the Portuguese to continue the race. To understand what happened, we went straight to the source and interviewed Michelin manager Piero Taramasso, who did not deny the problem but was still unable to give us a definite answer.
“It takes time to carry out all the analyzes, not only on the tire, but also on the data, in order to understand how it works, i.e. all parameters, from the pressure to the adjustment of the suspension – explained Taramasso – What I can say for sure is that there is no structural problem, the tire structure has remained intact and has no defects. Those photos that are floating around are not pretty, I can’t thank those who posted them, but you can see that it is a problem with the profile that has been resolved in two places.
Could it be a problem that you encountered while making the tire?
“We’re still trying to understand what happened and when we find out we will let the team and the media know. It may have something to do with the manufacture of the tire ”.
Oliveira used the hard mix, wasn’t that the right choice?
“The hard front worked well, Binder finished 4th on the KTM with this tire, even with the Ducatis, which rode it, there were no problems. Many of them were used all weekend, even in FP4 with a lot of heat and a full tank, in the race set-up and everything went well. It is a shame that this problem existed, we hope to have an answer as soon as possible.
Are you withdrawing this tire for the Austrian GP?
“It is a decision that we will make today or tomorrow, a possibility that cannot be ruled out. When we have a good understanding of the source of the problem and we are certain that it will not recur, then let’s leave it. On the other hand, if we do not have enough information, we will change it ”.
Bagnaia complained about the soft rear tire instead, did you manage to understand what happened?
“We have been concentrating on the front at the moment, but it’s true that Pecco, like Marquez, complained of poor grip. We’re looking, but If so, it could be a problem related to tire heating. The track conditions were special, the asphalt was not very rubbery after the morning rain and at 21 ° C it has never been so low. Here, too, we use a special housing that we are also bringing to Thailand to lower the temperature. These are tires that are therefore very sensitive to pressure. If the driver doesn’t push hard and doesn’t heat it, the mixture won’t work. It is a problem that exists with standard tires, but it is even worse with this one. However, we are also analyzing the data in this case and will surely have an answer this week.
But will the work take longer for the front?
“The microscopic and chemical analysis takes more time”.