Valencian GP: Bridgestone preview

Bridgestone slick compounds available:
Front: Soft, Medium.
Rear: Medium, Hard (asymmetric)

For the traditional season finale MotoGP heads to Valencia and the Ricardo Tormo circuit on the first weekend of November, two weeks later than last year. Valencia is the third shortest circuit of the season, after Laguna Seca and Sachsenring, and is one of the few with an anti-clockwise format.

The front tyres will have a much easier time in Valencia than they did in Malaysia as, although twistier, the circuit is slower. Consequently the front slicks are available in softer specifications; the soft and medium compounds. The rear slicks are actually available in the same medium and hard compounds as were used in Malaysia, but with the difference that in Valencia they are asymmetric to compensate for the imbalance of left- and right-handers. Valencia is the sixth race of the season to which Bridgestone have brought asymmetric rear tyres.

In the past the temperature has fluctuated significantly year-on-year, so the conditions will play an important role in tyre compound choices, especially as the date this time is later in the year. The total race distance is also one of the longest of the year; thirty laps and just over 120km of racing, or a total of 420 corners for the tyres to contend with.

A Bridgestone-shod rider has taken victory in Valencia twice in the last three years, with Troy Bayliss in 2006 and Casey Stoner in 2008. After sixteen rounds of the 2009 season, the first in which all riders are competing on Bridgestone tyres, there have been five different winners. Retaining his World crown, Valentino Rossi has won six races this year whilst Casey Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo are just behind with four apiece. Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso have each won one, and for both it was their first victory on Bridgestone tyres.

Hiroshi Yamada - Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Department

"Even though Valentino secured his very impressive ninth World Championship title last time out in Malaysia, I am sure that in Valencia we will see another of the close and thrilling races we have come to expect from this season. Spain is an important motorcycle market for us and I'm sure that we can deliver a good performance for the many fans that will come to watch in the very spectator-friendly venue. We enter this last round with another championship won on our tyres, and whilst this was a foregone conclusion for us, what's important to me is how it was won. Five different riders have won races this year, which is more than last season, and the championship has been much closer than in previous years. To make the competition closer was always one of the main objectives of single tyre supply."

Tohru Ubukata - Manager, Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development Department

"Valencia is a technically complex circuit with nine left-handers and five rights within a slow, twisty lap that demands good stability and a setup that allows for fast and precise changes of direction. Although the temperature will be much lower than in Malaysia and the track is slower, is still represents a good technical challenge for us. It's what we could call a busy circuit because the length of the lap and the number of corners means that the tyres are always working and have very little respite.

"The anti-clockwise layout means that we need good durability on the left side of the tyres and optimal warm-up performance on the right, making asymmetric rear tyres very important here. Also, its slow and twisty nature means that the bikes are often leant over which places more emphasis on the tyre's shoulders. Those who have a good rider and machine package will be rewarded, as those who do not can be prone to generating excess heat in the tyres so a good smooth rhythm is very important."

-credit: bridgestone