ELKHART LAKE, WIS. (August 5, 2015) - Michelin and its technical partner teams from BMW Team RLL, Corvette Racing, Porsche North America and Risi Competizione Ferrari roll into the scenic paddock at Road America this week with smiles all around.
In a motorsport world increasingly defined by constrained performance, the longest circuit of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship season brings a rare sense of freedom to drivers, teams and engineers.
The 4.08-mile natural terrain circuit features 171 feet of elevation changes, three long straightaways, including a monster 4,400 foot main straightaway, and a stunning array of corners that includes blind apexes, off camber, and long, high-speed corners. The combination makes Road America an opportunity for cars to stretch their legs and drivers to test their limits.
“Each of our technical partners has chosen Michelin to enable its total performance,” said Chris Baker, director of motorsports for Michelin North America. “With different wheelbases and weight distributions and engines mounted front (BMW and Corvette), amidships (Ferrari), and rear-engine (Porsche), our Michelin technical partners present a challenging mix of chassis designs and each team has a slightly different approach to going fast at Road America.”
As the only open-tire class in the TUDOR Championship, the factory linked GTLM class teams will look to take full advantage of the Michelin technical options.
“Depending upon the nature of the car and team and driver preferences, our technical partner teams can take advantage of the flexibility that permits them to run two or even three different MICHELIN® tire compounds on the car at the same time,” said Baker.
“Whichever options or combinations that our technical partners choose; they should find the grip, braking, cornering power and tread wear they demand,” said Baker. “While they come at it in different ways, they should all end up with a very competitive package for their car, chassis set up and race strategy.”
The two-hour 40-minute race will be broadcast live on FOX Sports 1 at 3:00 p.m. (ET), Sunday, August 9. Continuing coverage, notes and photos will be available throughout the race weekend at www.michelinalley.com.