Michelin clinches MotoGP tyre deal

Michelin will take over from Bridgestone as the official tyre supplier for the MotoGP world championship in 2016.

The French brand was the only one to submit a tender for the exclusive contract by yesterday’s (May 22) deadline, with Pirelli and Dunlop taking their interest no further after initial talks with Dorna.

Michelin hasn’t been involved in MotoGP since 2008 when it was struggling to match the performance of Japanese rivals Bridgestone.

Bridgestone though announced it will quit MotoGP at the end of 2015 after a seven-year stint as exclusive tyre supplier during the recent Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez.
Michelin confirmed during last weekend’s Le Mans round that it had submitted its tender, though the French company has been the clear favourite since Bridgestone decided to quit.

A statement released by Dorna this morning read: ‘Following French tyre manufacturer Michelin’s official tender, Dorna is pleased to announce that Michelin is to become the official tyre supplier to MotoGP as of the 2016 World Championship season. At the beginning of May, 2014 Dorna, in agreement with the FIM, opened a tender for tyre manufacturers interested in becoming official tyre supplier to MotoGP from the 2016 season.

Interested tyre manufacturers were able to request the technical specifications from Dorna’s Managing Director Javier Alonso, with three potential tyre suppliers initially expressing an interest before Michelin alone made a formal tender before the 22nd May deadline. The next step in the process will be the drawing out of a commercial agreement between Dorna and Michelin as Official Tyre Supplier, Michelin having already clearly proven its technical abilities to respond to the needs of a demanding Grand Prix racing schedule.”