Last season Shane Byrne left it to the final weekend to claim his sixth British Superbike Championship title, and the new season promises even more drama as it kicks off this weekend at Donington Park.
The 2018 season will be contested over 12 rounds, and Pirelli will be marking their 11th year as sole supplier to the championship. The Italian tyre maker brings around 4,000 slick, treaded and wet weather tyres to each and every round, giving you an idea of the monumental task involved.
Riders in the Superbike class will continue to have the option of four Pirelli Diablo Superbike Slick tyre options, all of which were originally developed in the World Superbike series. For 2018 a new front tyre option has also been introduced, and it sits between the existing SC1 and SC2 options. The tyre uses the same compound as the softer SC1 but utilises a different construction to improve stability under heavy braking. Following some intense pre-season testing, Pirelli reports it has already been well received by riders.
For the typical British weather, they will continue to offer both a Diablo Rain and Diablo Wet, the latter for intermediate conditions, and both tyres give riders a full range of options – with previous races witnessing every single potential combination of front and rear, adding to the excitement for fans.
For the ‘treaded’ tyre production classes including the British Supersport Championship, Pirelli National Superstock 1000 and 600 classes, Ducati TriOptions Cup and the new Junior Supersport category, riders will continue to use the Diablo Supercorsa SC.
“The scene is set for what has all the ingredients to be a thrilling 2018 British Superbike Championship,” comments Jason Griffiths, Pirelli UK racing manager. “The strength in depth of the riders in the Superbike class is incredible and this combined with each manufacturer being well represented, makes for an exciting season ahead. The pace of the riders at the official test held at Donington last week in what were far from ideal conditions was very impressive. The introduction of the additional option of front slick tyre will create extra interest for us at Pirelli to see how it performs in the UK conditions. No doubt the weather will play a part this weekend but hopefully we’ll get a dry track for the racing at what is also the beginning of the next chapter in the history of the Donington Park circuit.”
Tune in this weekend for what promises to be a fantastic opening round of racing!
