Johann Zarco was one of only two riders to fit the soft rear tyre for Sunday’s British MotoGP, but it was an overheating front that halted his podium challenge.
The Frenchman had been one of many to flag up concerns over the higher starting pressures needed to ensure compliance with MotoGP’s new real-time tyre monitoring system, which came into effect at Silverstone. This requires that riders remain above minimum pressure for at least 50 per cent of a grand prix race.
While a higher starting pressure is needed in case a rider spends most of the race in fresh air, if the same rider instead closely follows other bikes - like Zarco on Sunday - the usual step up in temperature/pressure from being in 'dirty air' will result in an even greater loss of grip than before.Asked directly if the tyre monitoring rules had been the reason for his front issues on Sunday, Zarco replied: “For sure.
“But as I say, the first half of the race has been very interesting. I was happy to do a good step and I could see many things from being with the other riders.” Other riders highlighted that the cool Silverstone conditions, late-race rain and flowing nature of the Northamptonshire circuit masked the full effect of higher starting pressures.
"I think honestly this weekend we were lucky that it was cold," Aprilia's Maverick Vinales said of the stricter tyre pressure monitoring."But let's see in Austria, also with the hard braking."
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