The 2015 MotoGP season may be over and done, but for Bridgestone it will surely live long in the memory.
Numerous records have fallen this year on Bridgestone’s latest specification MotoGP tyres, and the world’s largest tyre manufacturer bowed out of the premier motorcycle racing series in style. Having first entered the MotoGP arena in 2002, Bridgestone very quickly established themselves in the series as we entered an unprecedented era of tyre wars.
After two successive championship titles under Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi, Bridgestone became sole supplier to the series in 2009. Going forward, instead of focusing on outright performance, Bridgestone began to develop tyres which enhanced rider safety, and gave all participating manufacturers dependable performance. However, that high level of performance continued to improve, as did rider’s lap and overall race times, with records falling every year. Continual development of construction and compound technologies, and the introduction of innovations such as asymmetric front slick tyres have helped the MotoGP World Championship reach never-before-seen levels of performance.
This year, riders set 11 new race lap records, 13 qualifying lap records and 12 race time records.
Some of their biggest milestones in the series since 2002:
- First Race – 2002 Grand Prix of Japan, Suzuka
- First Pole Position – 2002 Australian Grand Prix – Jeremy McWilliams, Proton Team KR
- First MotoGP Podium – 2003 Rio Grand Prix – Makoto Tamada, Pramac Honda
- First MotoGP Victory – 2004 Rio Grand Prix – Makoto Tamada, Camel Honda
- First MotoGP World Championship Title – 2007, Casey Stoner, Ducati Marlboro Team
- Second MotoGP World Championship Title – 2008, Valentino Rossi, Fiat Yamaha Team
- Final MotoGP Race – 2015 Valencian Community Grand Prix
- In Total – 242 Grands Prix Contested; 159 Victories, 464 Podiums, 157 Pole Positions, 9 World Championship Titles
Bridgestone’s final season in numbers:
- Over 9000 Battlax tyres used during 18 Grands Prix and official group tests this season
- A total of 27 slick and wet tyre specifications ensured optimum safety and performance to riders this year
- Highest track temperature in 2015 – 55°C at the Catalan Grand Prix during the race
- Coldest track temperature in 2015 – 13°C at the French Grand Prix at the start of Free Practice 3
- Eleven new MotoGP race lap records set on Bridgestone tyres in 2015
- Thirteen new MotoGP qualifying lap records set on Bridgestone tyres in 2015
- Twelve total race time records set on Bridgestone tyres in 2015
Over those 14 years, Bridgestone have learned a lot about motorcycle tyre development, much of which has worked it’s way down into their road and track range available to the everyday rider.
They might be out of MotoGP, but there are still more technologies from the race series to come too!
