German MotoGP™ debrief with Shinji Aoki

Bridgestone slick options: Front: Soft, Asymmetric Front, Medium & Hard; Rear: Soft, Medium & Hard (Asymmetric)

Bridgestone wet tyre options: Soft (Main), Hard (Alternative)

For the third successive year the German Grand Prix was won by Repsol Honda Team’s Marc Marquez who took a comfortable victory over teammate Dani Pedrosa and Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Valentino Rossi who crossed the finish line in second and third place respectively.

This year’s German Grand Prix saw Marquez beat all of the circuit records as he set a new Circuit Best Lap record (1’20.336) in qualifying, a new Circuit Record Lap (1’21.530) on lap 10 of the race, while the overall race time (41’01.087) beat the old record by eleven seconds.

Q&A with Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development Department

At this year’s German Grand Prix an asymmetric front slick was made available to riders at Sachsenring for the first time. Was this tyre a popular choice and did it perform as you expected it to?

“Recently we have had the riders asking Bridgestone to develop an asymmetric front slick for Sachsenring, so it was a nice technical challenge to deliver what they wanted. This development wasn’t easy as no teams use Sachsenring for private testing, so it involved a lot of simulation work based on our existing data for the circuit and we didn’t have a chance to test this tyre at this circuit before offering it to the riders. However, I was confident that the asymmetric front slick we developed would be well received and already in the first free practice session at the German Grand Prix some riders were eager to try it. The asymmetric front slick for Sachsenring featured medium compound rubber for the centre and left sections of the tyre, with soft compound rubber on the right shoulder and this ensured good warm-up performance and temperature retention throughout the whole of front tyre. It not only increased rider safety but also proved to work well when track temperatures increased, with nineteen of the twenty-five riders selecting the asymmetric front slick for the race. We had a lot of good feedback from this specification of tyre so our decision to bring this tyre to Sachsenring was definitely justified.”

The tyre allocation at the German Grand Prix included four front slick options instead of the regular three options. Why was this change made and do you envisage this occurring at other races this season?

“In previous years we usually offered a hard compound front slick in our German Grand Prix tyre allocation as it is a demanding circuit and is quite abrasive. However, analysing the data from last year we felt that in a regular front tyre allocation, the best options this year were the soft compound for cool conditions and the asymmetric and medium front slicks as the ‘main’ options. Due to the very hot conditions in the Saxony region leading up to the race and a weather forecast that showed ambient temperatures ranging from 12°C-27°C over the race weekend, we decided to add a fourth front tyre option – the hard compound – into our allocation. The FIM regulations around tyre supply state that the tyre supplier can change the regular allocation to manage extreme conditions so we operated with that clause in mind. It turned out to be a good decision as on race day track temperatures were the hottest over the whole race weekend and it meant riders had another option available to them. Given the extremely unbalanced layout of Sachsenring and the large variation in weather conditions last weekend, I don’t think we will need to provide four front tyre options at other rounds this year as three options is usually more than enough. However, we will always work to ensure that the riders have enough options to manage every riding condition and are grateful to the FIM and the teams for helping us efficiently implement our expanded tyre allocation last weekend”

We have seen many new tyre specifications from Bridgestone in the first half of the 2015, can we expect development to continue at the same pace in the second half of the MotoGP season?

“Bridgestone is committed to continuing development throughout the 2015 MotoGP season and as a result we will see some new tyre developments in the second half of the season. Compared to last year we have changed the rear tyre allocation at many races so that in general, our asymmetric rear slicks feature softer compounds than at the corresponding rounds last year. Our asymmetric tyres will also feature at Phillip Island – where a brand new asymmetric front tyre, different to what we offered there last year has been developed – and also at Valencia. Our rear tyre allocation at Phillip Island will also be brand new for this year and will be specific to this circuit only. With these developments I hope that riders not only enjoy greater levels of safety and control, but that the incredibly fast pace we have seen in the first half of the year continues all the way through to Valencia.”

More, from a press release issued by Waznie Racing:

Jordan Szoke extended his points lead of the Mopar Canadian Superbike National Championship by 77 points during the very first national event held at Castrol Raceway just outside of the province’s capital Edmonton Alberta, Canada. Szoke is gunning for a 10th career Superbike title on his Mopar Express Lane backed BMWS1000RR machines.

Szoke scorched to pole position on Friday afternoon during a heat wave that was affecting the area putting temperatures in the 30 degree Celsius (86 degree Fahrenheit) range. “Our Dunlop spec tires work best when they are hot, really really hot.” Says Szoke. “I was a bit surprised we went that fast, that quick. I lost a few tenths when I blew the chicane at the end of the lap, but the rest of the lap was perfect so I am pretty happy with our results.” Szoke hit the pavement on the newly paved road course just the morning before.

Szoke achieved Castrol Raceway’s lap record around the 2.7 km (1.69-mile) 14 turn track with a 1:17.7during the final top 10 shoot out. Shattering the previous track record of 1:19.60 set by local ace Justin Knapik in 2014.

Szoke grabbed maximum points throughout the weekend by claiming both victories in the championship double header held on Saturday and Sunday afternoons during pristine conditions. “This is the first weekend we’ve had our data package working and we have the electronics working beautifully.” Says Szoke after he pulled a 10 sec gap from the rest of the field during Saturday’s victory. “I didn’t think it was going to be a runaway that’s for sure.”

Szoke also claimed is 49th Superbike career victory on Sunday sweeping the weekend and claiming all the maximum points available.

“I don’t pay a lot of attention to the record books, I just try and win every time out my big goal this year is to win the championship back.”

Szoke also catapults himself to 5th position in the BMW Motorrad Race Trophy. An innovative project in motorcycle racing comprised of 19 championships that stage 318 races in 23 countries on six continents.

More, from a press release issued by Jodi Christie Racing:

Three Podium Finishes in Difficult Weekend for Jodi Christie at Edmonton

Keene, ON — July 15, 2015 — Over a difficult weekend at Edmonton, AB for rounds 3 and 4 of the Mopar Canadian Superbike Championship series, Honda Canada/Accelerated Technologies rider Jodi Christie still came away with three podium finishes and retains the points lead in the Hindle Pro Sport Bike class.

Castrol Raceway in Edmonton is a new venue for the CSBK series, and after attending a local EMRA (Edmonton Motorcycle Roadracing Association) regional event the weekend before the CSBK doubleheader, Jodi was up to speed quickly on both the Honda CBR600RR and CBR1000RR SP in Thursday’s opening practice sessions. However, a crash in the afternoon damaged the team’s No. 1 CBR1000RR SP enough that it could not be used for the remainder of the weekend, forcing Jodi onto his backup bike for the Superbike class. In Friday’s qualifying sessions, Jodi posted a lap on his Honda CBR600RR almost a full second quicker than his nearest competitor to qualify on pole for the Pro Sport Bike class. In Superbike, Jodi qualified in second to title rival Jordan Szoke.

In Saturday’s Pro Sport Bike race, Jodi was fourth off the line while Kenny Riedmann jumped out to an early lead. On the softer of the two Dunlop spec tires available, Riedmann was able to pull out a gap of several seconds, but Jodi – on the harder tire – made an incredible late-race charge to challenge for the lead on the final lap. After passing Riedmann just a few corners from the finish, Jodi crashed in the last corner before the checkered flag. The two riders had pulled out enough of a gap on the field that he was able to remount and finish in third position, for his first podium of the weekend.

Jodi led the first few laps of the Mopar Pro Superbike race before Jordan Szoke made a pass for the lead. Again, Jodi had chosen the harder of the two tire choices while Szoke was on the softer and pulled out a gap of several seconds. Unfortunately Jodi could not close the gap in the later stages as he did in the Sport Bike race, and finished in second position. The team worked diligently on Saturday night to find a setup for the Honda CBR1000RR SP that would work with the softer tire and were confident of a better result on Sunday.

Sunday’s Pro Sport Bike race began just as it did on Saturday, with Riedmann making an early break on the softer tire while Jodi stuck with the harder tire. But this time Jodi was unable to close in on Riedmann as he did on Saturday, eventually finishing in second position. Jodi retains the Hindle Pro Sport Bike championship points lead, although the margin has shrunk to just two points with three races remaining in the series.

In Sunday’s Superbike race, Jodi led the first few laps before crashing unhurt, losing the front end under braking for turn 3. Jodi remains in second in the point standings, 77 behind leader Szoke; a win is worth 50 points.

The Mopar Canadian Superbike Championship moves on to Atlantic Motorsport park in Shubenacadie, NS for round 5 of the series on August 2.

About Jodi Christie Racing

Jodi Christie Racing competes in the Mopar Canadian Superbike Championship with support from Honda Canada, Accelerated Technologies, Cameron Cycle, Hindle Exhaust, Bazzaz, Dunlop, Pro 6 Cycle, AiM Sports Data Acquisition, DID Chains, Orient Express, Blue Streak Racing, Motion Pro, Elka Suspension, Motovan, Motul Oil, Zero Gravity, Drift, NGK, Sunstar, Joe Rocket Leathers, Shoei Helmets, Mikey Moto, Bickle Racing, Woodcraft Technologies, Armour Bodies, GBRacing, Vortex, TCX Boots, Ride Rich, K-Tech, Wes Lake, Andrew & Peter Trevitt, and Gary & Roslyn Christie. Follow the team on Facebook (JodiChristieRacing) or Twitter and Instagram (@JCRacing20). For more information about the Canadian Superbike Series and to watch the races online, visit www.csbk.ca.