(As the other thread just turned into a wankfest, it's probably best to leave them to it.)
Stoner showed a masterclass last year, using the trick gearbox to good effect. The closest his teammate and next rider along got was 14sec - can he repeat this?
Somehow I think not... Yamaha have gotten much closer than at the start of last season and Jorge has shown he's in the hunt, but then again, last year Stoner wasn't even close at Estoril and this year he monstered it.
What's for sure is that this track will show his real potential for the rest of the season, being a track he has won at already on the RC213V and by a significant margin. He is the only rider in the 800cc era to win from pole at Le Mans... which may be nothing, but stats are always something to get your teeth into in the absence of any other gossip.
How will he like the new tyres and can they sort out the chatter will factor in, but ability and desire won't be a factor - he's riding a high of beating his main rival twice on the trot at his home tracks.
According to Bridgestone, Le Mans is the least demanding track, from a tyre perspective, so they will be offering the soft and medium front and the first outing for the soft asymmetric rear, as well as last race's asymmetric medium rear.
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Shinji Aoki - Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
"Due to its layout and usually low track temperatures, Le Mans is a race where softer compound tyres are required to generate the necessary levels of grip. The circuit has quite a stop-and-go nature with a series of slow corners punctuated with two straights and though lateral loads placed on the tyres are relatively low compared to other circuits, the tyres provided need to offer good stability under braking, particularly at the end of the straight sections.[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
"The second half of the lap is mainly right-hand turns, causing an imbalance in the temperatures generated across the tyre and so asymmetric rear tyres with comparatively harder rubber on the right shoulder are provided at Le Mans. The weather at this circuit is also very unstable and can have a significant impact upon bike settings and tyre choice."[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Bridgestone slick compounds available:[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Front: Soft, Medium.[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Rear: Soft, Medium (Asymmetric).[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Soft (Main), Hard (Alternative).[/font]
Stoner showed a masterclass last year, using the trick gearbox to good effect. The closest his teammate and next rider along got was 14sec - can he repeat this?
Somehow I think not... Yamaha have gotten much closer than at the start of last season and Jorge has shown he's in the hunt, but then again, last year Stoner wasn't even close at Estoril and this year he monstered it.
What's for sure is that this track will show his real potential for the rest of the season, being a track he has won at already on the RC213V and by a significant margin. He is the only rider in the 800cc era to win from pole at Le Mans... which may be nothing, but stats are always something to get your teeth into in the absence of any other gossip.
How will he like the new tyres and can they sort out the chatter will factor in, but ability and desire won't be a factor - he's riding a high of beating his main rival twice on the trot at his home tracks.
According to Bridgestone, Le Mans is the least demanding track, from a tyre perspective, so they will be offering the soft and medium front and the first outing for the soft asymmetric rear, as well as last race's asymmetric medium rear.
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Shinji Aoki - Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
"Due to its layout and usually low track temperatures, Le Mans is a race where softer compound tyres are required to generate the necessary levels of grip. The circuit has quite a stop-and-go nature with a series of slow corners punctuated with two straights and though lateral loads placed on the tyres are relatively low compared to other circuits, the tyres provided need to offer good stability under braking, particularly at the end of the straight sections.[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
"The second half of the lap is mainly right-hand turns, causing an imbalance in the temperatures generated across the tyre and so asymmetric rear tyres with comparatively harder rubber on the right shoulder are provided at Le Mans. The weather at this circuit is also very unstable and can have a significant impact upon bike settings and tyre choice."[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Bridgestone slick compounds available:[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Front: Soft, Medium.[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Rear: Soft, Medium (Asymmetric).[/font]
[font=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Soft (Main), Hard (Alternative).[/font]
