British Grand Prix debrief with Hirohide Hamashima Round 6: British GP Post-race debrief Silverstone Circuit, Tuesday 14 June 2011 Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Soft, Medium. Rear (asymmetric): Medium, Hard Wet compounds available: Front: Soft. Rear: Soft The 2011 British Grand Prix was the second to be run at the new Silverstone circuit, remodelled for its return to the MotoGP calendar last year after an absence since 1986. The circuit remained the same this year, but the use of the new pit and paddock complex meant that the start/finish line was changed, giving the riders a new first corner to negotiate. The weather threw everything it had at the riders during the weekend Friday morning was dry, the afternoon was wet but drying, Saturday was warm and dry but Sunday was soaked after relentless rain all day. Standing water claimed three of the front-runners in the race: Ben Spies, Jorge Lorenzo and Marco Simoncelli. Casey Stoner dominated to take his third consecutive victory, ahead of teammate Andrea Dovizioso and Colin Edwards who broke his collarbone just over a week ago in Catalunya. Hirohide Hamashima Assistant to Director, Motorsport Tyre Development Division Bridgestone brought a revised front slick tyre compound selection to Silverstone this year was the new selection better? “Yes, I am happy with our revised front tyre options this year as we saw that on Friday morning and Saturday many riders preferred the soft compound slick which we didn’t have at Silverstone last year. Feedback was good for both options and the laptimes on both were also fast. Last year Silverstone was a new circuit for everyone so that made tyre selection very difficult and theoretical, whereas this season we last year’s race data which allowed us to make a much more accurate and, I believe, more suitable selection. It’s part of continually learning, analysing and using that data to develop and improve in the right direction.” Even on Friday morning the laptimes looked fast compared to last year, and then on Saturday they were markedly faster. Why do you think this was? “Even on Friday morning the fastest lap was just 0.2seconds from the existing lap record so all weekend, when the track has been dry, the laptimes have been fast. Then during qualifying Casey was 1.5seconds faster than the lap record which is a significant amount. I think this is down to a combination of bike development since last year, the fact that the circuit was brand new to riders last year so now they’ve had more track time, and weather conditions which were slightly better on Saturday than last season. We have also improved our rear slick tyre compounds since last year, particularly the medium compound asymmetric rear which at Silverstone this season featured our extra soft compound in the left shoulder for improved warm-up performance.” On Sunday the rain didn’t stop and the race was fully wet how was wet tyre performance? “The biggest challenge for the wets on Sunday was the amount of standing water on the circuit. Durability and consistency were both reasonable, but some riders were caught out by aquaplaning which is when there is too much standing water or the puddles are too deep for the tyres to disperse all the water, leaving a film of water between the tyres and the tarmac. Overall though, Casey in particular was able to demonstrate great performance in what were very slippery and difficult conditions so I am happy with the way our wet tyres dealt with the conditions and with the cold temperature.” More, from a press release issued by CayloR-Made Motorsports: CayloR-Made Motorsports Crew on the podium at Talladega! The CayloR-Made Motorsports Crew was in action again this past weekend during a WERA Sportsman Series race at Talladega Gran Prix Raceway in Anniston, Alabama. CayloR-Made Motorsports owner Opie Caylor led the assault as the racing got started Sunday afternoon, on his Dunlop sponsored GSX-R1000. Despite a nasty summer-cold, Opie got a great start and went about opening a gap on the rest of the field. Opie turned lap times as low as 57.3 seconds and went on to win A Superstock by 7.7 seconds. The Opedogg returned in Formula One with a performance that netted the same result! Turning laps as fast as 57.5 on the same set of Dunlops used in A Superstock, Opie put in fast lap after fast lap. At the halfway point, a comfortable cushion was secured. As the laps ran down, the focus was just on maintaining the lead. After his second win of the day, Opie said, “Today was really tough! I’ve been under the weather for a week now and I hardly have any strength after halfway. I figured if I could push until lap five and get a lead I was comfortable with, I could back the pace down and manage the gap. Luckily, it worked out for me. Today was hot!” Other CayloR-Made Motorsports riders did the business too! Ian Coleman flew the CayloR-Made flag in B Superstock and B Superbike Novice by taking dominant wins in each race. CayloR-Made rider Matt Dalke, riding a GSX-R1000, battled for the Novice win in A Superstock, A Superbike and Formula One but finished second despite turning lap times in the 59 second range! Dave Krier, in his first race in nearly ten years, won the Novice division of the combined E Superstock race and finished second overall on a CayloR-Made Motorsports Ninja 250 built by Opie himself! And new CayloR-Made Motorsports recruit Carson Zinger had a weekend to never forget! One year ago, Carson crashed at Talladega during this same event. Carson would leave Talladega in a helicopter that day but vowed to come back even stronger. He did just that by securing his first podium finish ever in C Superbike Novice! In addition, he did it on a bike he had never even sat on! Carson borrowed Matt Dalke’s GSX-R600 after his own bike dropped a cylinder earlier in the day. Carson used the warm-up lap to familiarize himself with the bike and took off at the drop of the green flag. Ten laps later, Carson would cross the finish line in second place! At the end of the weekend, Opie said, “I can’t tell you how proud I am of all my riders. Each one of them goes out there and does their job, period. The Dogg-Pound is all about winning! CayloR-Made Motorsports is about helping each rider become a winner on the track and off the track. Yeah, we work on bikes back at the shop and all, but there is so much more to it. Ask any of the Crew! It’s like Fight Club on two wheels!” Special thanks to Eric Douglas for his assistance in the pits! The CayloR-Made Motorsports Crew returns to action in just two weeks for a WERA Regional at Road Atlanta. Come check us out!