News

The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship touches down at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve for the penultimate round of the season and the demanding and undulating circuit means Pirelli have opted for the harder end of their range. There will be no SCQ tyre available at the Pirelli Portuguese Round while there are two development solutions – one at the front and one at the rear – for riders to use.

NO SCQ, ONE DEVELOPMENT SOLUTION: restricted use for SCX

Due to the demands of the ‘rollercoaster’, Pirelli have opted to remove the SCQ from the allocation and replace it with the SCX meaning it can only be used in the Tissot Superpole and Tissot Superpole Race. Because the SCX can only be used in the 10-lap race, the standard SC0 solution becomes the softest available rear tyre in feature-length races for Portimao, and it’s joined by the A1126 development SC1 tyre. This made its debut last year at Mandalika and was used most recently at the Autodrom Most.

THE FULL RANGE: plenty of front tyre choices

For the front of the machines, Pirelli are bringing a large selection. The softest tyre is the development SC0 in C0927 specification, featuring the same carcass as the B1148 specification but a different compound to provide more grip at the front axle. Two standard solutions make up the remainder of the range. These are the SC1 medium and SC2 hard tyre to give teams and riders a range of tyres to choose from at the Portuguese venue.

A MIX OF STANDARD AND DEVELOPMENT SOLUTIONS: lots of choice in WorldSSP

Pirelli’s innovation isn’t only limited to WorldSBK with several development solutions available to the WorldSSP field. At the front, the standard SC1 soft tyre is joined by the development SC1-A soft in B1333 specification. This tyre made its debut at Magny-Cours and was used a lot last weekend at Aragon, while the SC1-B medium returns. This tyre has been available throughout 2023 as part of an ongoing test for its used in WorldSSP next year.

PIRELLI’S VIEW: the reasons behind the selection

Explaining Pirelli’s tyre selection, Motorcycle Racing Director Giorgio Barbier said: “Portimao is certainly not the most demanding circuit on which we are called to race during the season, but it still remains one of those tracks not to be underestimated, both by the riders and by ourselves as tyre manufacturers. It is difficult for the riders due to the ups and downs and blind crests followed by sudden braking but, for this very reason, it is full of charm. But it is also a circuit which, despite being completely resurfaced in 2020, is very poor in grip and, at the same time, subjects the tyres to high lateral and longitudinal loads. Therefore, solutions that are too soft over the race distance could be penalised due to the graining they could encounter, especially with low temperatures. This is why we will use the SCX instead of the SCQ as a Superpole and possibly Superpole Race tyre while for long races the choice falls on the standard SC0 or on the development SC1 capable of ensuring better performance consistency."

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