Pirelli comes home for opening round of Blancpain Endurance Series

The opening round of the Blancpain Endurance Series takes place this weekend at Pirelli’s home circuit of Monza, only half an hour away from the company’s Milan headquarters. Pirelli will supply tyres to this year’s five-round championship on an exclusive basis, with a wide variety of teams representing different manufacturers, most of which use Pirelli P Zero as original equipment on their road cars. The cars eligible will be race versions of road-going supercars, as have already been seen on the opening round of the FIA GT Series in Nogaro, France, last month. Pirelli is also the proud sponsor of an award to the top-placed team contesting both series, underlining the Italian firm’s commitment to world-class endurance racing. For Monza, Pirelli will supply a competition product to meet the cutting-edge demands of one of the fastest tracks on the calendar, where the endurance-based action is relentless. This underlines not only the performance but also the durability of Pirelli’s products: the reason why more than 250 homologations of P Zero road tyres have been produced for the world’s most prestigious car manufacturers, making Pirelli the leader in the coveted Ultra High Performance sector. For racing, the Blancpain Endurance Series cars will have two types of tyre available: one slick tyre and one wet tyre. The Blancpain Endurance Series features a wide variety of different car configurations, ranging from front to rear engines, but despite this radically diverse set of vehicle dynamics, the Italian tyres guarantee optimal performance for every competitor. Monza is steeped in history, having first hosted the Italian Grand Prix in 1922. The characteristics of Monza reward bravery and commitment, as so much of the 5.993-kilometre lap is spent at full throttle. Because of the long straights, the cars run with low downforce, meaning that grip is at a premium in the corners and drivers frequently experience understeer. For Pirelli, the Monza race represents a triumphant homecoming that celebrates the Italian company’s backing of the Blancpain series for the first time, in addition to supplying the FIA GT Series. A full grid of 60 GT3 cars will take the start at Monza, and the event will also host a round of the Pirelli-supplied Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo. Pirelli’s senior engineer Matteo Braga commented: “Monza is always a very important race for us and one of the toughest tests for any tyre, due to the flat-out straights as well as the many impacts against the kerbs. We’re delighted to offer the teams our latest tyres for Monza, which offer the perfect compromise between strength, durability and performance on one of the most demanding and evocative circuits that we visit all year." Qualifying for the Blancpain Endurance Series takes place in the afternoon of Saturday 13 April, using a similar system to that seen in Formula One. The race on Sunday 14 April lasts for three hours.

For Blancpain Endurance Series information: www.blancpain-endurance-series.com