New Bridgestone Brand Battlax Racing R10 DOT Road Racing Radial Motorcycle Tire Now Available NASHVILLE, Tenn. (April 19, 2011) Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO) has announced a new Bridgestone brand production road racing radial motorcycle tire, the BATTLAX RACING R10. The Battlax R10 is now available to customers in the United States and Canada. Designed to offer enhanced performance and improved lap times on the track, the new tire combines several updated performance features including new rubber compounds, tread patterns and constructions. Bridgestone Corporation is the Official Tire Supplier to the FIM MotoGP World Championship. Tire development at this high level of racing improves production-racing tires for racers and riders around the world. Tire engineers analyzed several design goals during development of the new R10; namely, grip capability, a high level of turning performance and strong controllability. Progressive Grip Performance was achieved by using a new tread pattern, comprised of three-dimensional (3-D) grooves that offer stable braking and strong traction under acceleration. In addition, the angle groove arrangement supplies tread rigidity, while flexibility in the construction provides quick warm-up and good grip in low traction conditions. Turning Performance is solid, using optimum crown profiles and tire constructions to enhance turning and line holding under acceleration. Vertical tread grooves provide high cornering performance and good slide control. On the front R10, vertical tread grooves at specific angles give good feedback, especially entering a turn. Reliable Controllability is offered by the R10 from vertical grooves in the rear tread pattern that aid in corner entry. Also, fine-tuned tire construction and rubber compounds give riders high flexibility in cornering line selection. The characteristics achieved for the new Battlax R10 enable solid performance to be realized using only a few rubber compounds and constructions. The current line-up is comprised of a front 120/70ZR17 (medium) Type 3 compound and two rear sizes, 180/55ZR17 and 190/55ZR17. Both rear tires are available in (hard) Type 2 and (medium) Type 3 compounds. The Battlax R10 is now for sale throughout North America only from select race-tire vendors. See www.bridgestonemotorcycletires.com for vendors and more tire information.