SMP vetoed plan for new LMP1 tyres at Le Mans
The SMP Racing team vetoed a plan to introduce a new Michelin tyre aimed at making the LMP1 privateers more competitive in this weekend's Le Mans 24 Hours.
Michelin asked the privateer teams ahead of a development test at Aragon in April whether they were in favour of the introduction of a new tyre for the FIA World Endurance Championship finale.
Unanimous agreement of all the teams was required and the SMP voted against the move.
Sebastien Philippe, managing director of the ART Grand Prix squad that runs the two SMP BR Engineering BR1s, explained that the team's objections centred on concerns about bringing an untested tyre straight to Le Mans.
"We didn't want to arrive in Le Mans week with a new tyre that we didn't know," Philippe told Motorsport.com. "When we race new tyres we need to be able to prepare properly with Michelin."
Michelin endurance programme manager Jerome Mondain explained that the development timescale for the new tyre would not have permitted it to be ready in time for the official Le Mans test day at the start of June.
"We said from the beginning that we would only be able to bring something straight to Le Mans," he told Motorsport.com. "We could have brought one new compound, but probably not all the tyres in that compound necessary for the event."
The tyre development programme was instigated last year at the behest of the WEC organisation. It had been planned to start the process during a test organised on the opening morning of the Shanghai event in November.
But this session took place entirely on a wet track, which meant the development process didn't begin until the official two-day test ahead of the Sebring 1000 Miles in March.
The privateers, like the factory Toyota team, have three different specifications of tyre available to choose from: a medium, soft/hot and soft/cold compounds.
Previous article
Mercedes F1 vs Toyota LMP1: Technical comparison
Next article
Jarvis: GTE Pro field as strong as LMP1's golden age
About this article
| Series | Le Mans |
| Event | 24 Hours of Le Mans |
| Author | Gary Watkins |
Le Mans: Dan Gurney - Le Mans 1967
All Le Mans 24 hour-winning cars
Why Ferrari is ending its 50-year top-flight sportscar racing exile
Making a return to top-flight sportscar racing after 50 years away, Ferrari will enter the Le Mans Hypercar ranks in 2023. The Italian marque denies the link with Formula 1's new cost cap that frees up resources, but it's certainly no coincidence...
Oliver Gavin's Corvette Racing highlights
Oliver Gavin has stepped down from the full-time Corvette Racing line-up after a stellar career with the team spanning nearly 20 years. He looks back on a stint that encompassed, among other successes, five Le Mans 24 Hours victories.
How Tandy joined an exclusive club of endurance legends
Victory at last year's Spa 24 Hours meant Nick Tandy had completed the unofficial sextuple crown of the world's six biggest endurance races, becoming the first Briton to do so. Ahead of his fresh start with Corvette Racing, he explains how he did it…
The cherished curios kept by motorsport's professionals at home
Keeping trophies and momentos of key triumphs is par for the course for motorsport professionals, but what are the most cherished souvenirs picked up by the drivers and engineers who have seen and done it all?
The Porsche icon that forged sportscar racing's greatest era
Porsche is returning to the top class of Le Mans with an LMDh prototype that it hopes will write its next successful chapter in sportscar racing. But it will have to go some to emulate its 956/962, a car which defines the Group C age more than any other.
How Tom Kristensen forged his ‘Mr Le Mans’ legend
He is synonymous with success at the Circuit de la Sarthe, but Tom Kristensen's sportscar legacy amounts to much more than his record-breaking nine Le Mans wins, as the most successful driver ever at Sebring and a world champion to boot…
Why Audi’s shock return promises a new age for sportscars
OPINION: The news that Audi will return to Le Mans means we'll at last get to see the fight promised in 2012 against Peugeot and Toyota. It also gives LMDh a tangible form, which could open the floodgates for more like-minded marques to follow suit…
The eternal debate revived after the 2019/20 WEC season
It may have been missed amid the clamour over Lewis Hamilton's seventh F1 title, but Britain had another world champion crowned last weekend. Mike Conway's WEC crown raises an old conundrum - does title glory make up for the pain of Le Mans defeat?
