Pirelli have unveiled their solutions for the Tissot Estoril Round as the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship lands in Portugal for the penultimate round of the season. All the tyres that can be used in WorldSBK come from Pirelli’s standard range with the Italian brand opting to go for their softest tyres in Portugal.
SCQ IN THE ALLOCATION
With Pirelli opting for a soft allocation, it means the SCQ tyre is available for riders to use in the Tissot Superpole session, Tissot Superpole Race and Free Practice sessions. For the long races, riders can choose between the standard SCX supersport – used widely throughout the year – and the SC0 soft. In the event of rain, it’s the standard Intermedia and standard SCR1 Rain tyre available to the riders.
STANDARD FRONT SOLUTIONS
For the front tyre choices, both in dry and wet conditions, riders can choose from two options. For slick tyres, the softest is the SC1 soft and that is joined in the allocation by the SC2 medium as the harder of the two options; both are standard solutions. Should it rain in Portugal, riders will, as with the rear options, be able to choose from the standard Intermedia and SCR1 Rain tyres.
WORLD SUPERSPORT OPTIONS
For the WorldSSP field in Estoril, riders have two slick tyre choices for the front and rear. For the former, the competitors can choose from the SC1 soft and the SC2 medium tyre. At the rear of the bike, they can fit the SCX supersoft and SC0 soft tyre. Should it rain, riders can fit the SCR1 Rain tyre for both the front and rear.
“IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE WHETHER THE PERFORMANCE GROWTH RECORDED THROUGHOUT THIS SEASON IS CONFIRMED THIS WEEKEND AS WELL”
Discussing Pirelli’s allocation, Giorgio Barbier, Motorcycle Racing Director at Pirelli, said: “Estoril is a circuit we know very well, as it has hosted the FIM Superbike World Championship, albeit with some interruptions, since the late 1980s. In terms of its layout and asphalt characteristics, with the last complete resurfacing dating back to 2006, it is a track that has historically not offered particularly high levels of grip, while placing different types of demands on the tyres. The circuit’s geographical location, not far from the coast, is another factor that needs to be taken into consideration, with the possibility of rainfall and sudden temperature changes potentially requiring teams and riders to react quickly with their bike set-up. Last year, precisely because of these characteristics, we provided riders with two rear development solutions: the E0479 extrasoft and the E0126 supersoft. Both were immediately appreciated, delivering significant improvements both over a single lap and across race distance. These two specifications were subsequently promoted to range tyres, making them available to all motorcyclists, and they are being offered again for this round. It will be interesting to see whether the performance growth recorded throughout this season is confirmed this weekend as well.”
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