MotoGP: Colin Edwards looking for Michelin backlash

Colin Edwards reckons Michelin has got to drastically improve edge grip to get back on a par with the performance of rivals Bridgestone in the MotoGP world championship.

Grip at maximum lean angle and acceleration grip are the two main areas where Michelin has to develop, according to Colin Edwards, who told MCN: “The absolute one thing we have to get which Bridgestone has is when they get that sucker cranked over, they get it cranked over far and when they touch the gas it just doesn’t seem to move.

“They have this ability to generate speed at full lean angle and once they touch the gas they are able to generate speed and get it to turn. And that lets them pull that three or four Ks off the corner.

“That is the one area that absolutely we are lacking and we need that. We just have to wait so long to get off the very edge of the tyre and we need to get a better traction.

“We need to change our theory because the current one obviously doesn’t work.”

Edwards struggled to make any big breakthrough with rear tyres in a two-day test session in Brno in the Czech Republic last week, but at least he found an improved front Michelin tyre that he said could help in the last six races of the 2007 season.

“The front allows you to brake a lot harder and deeper into the corner. And its like a less busy action, it feels more supple and less rigid. I was happy with that.

“But the rear on the other hand seems to be at a bit of standstill. We found something but it might be one of those cases where it might just work in Brno and it won’t anywhere else,”added Edwards, who will partner James Toseland in the Tech 3 Yamaha MotoGP squad next season.