Positive race début for Pirelli in the GP of Qatar

The first race winners of the Pirelli control tyre races in Moto2™ and Moto3™ were Alonso Lopez (Sync SpeedUP / Boscoscuro) in Moto2™ and David Alonso (CFMOTO Aspar Team) in Moto3™ who won the races of the Qatar Grand Prix, the first round of the 2024 World Championship GP Motorcycle Racing season.
Results on the tyre front were positive and there was satisfaction in the Pirelli camp with this début. Several lap records were broken from the first sessions on Friday and consistent performance characterised this first round which was held on one of the most demanding circuits for tyres.

Satisfied with the results achieved in less than simple conditions
 
“Considering the fact that this - in addition to being our first Grand Prix - is also one of the most demanding tracks on the calendar for tyres, we can be satisfied with the performance our tyres demonstrated. In Moto3, we saw an extremely fast race with a lap time improvement of almost two seconds as compared with 2023, so unquestionably an extremely positive result. And in this class, we saw an almost unanimous choice for race tyres. We did not see quite as drastic an improvement in Moto2 but, as stated yesterday, the riders have had less time to practice. Both in the Portimão tests and in Practice 1 on Friday evening, they did not lap much at all due to the inclement weather and, as a result, there was quite a bit of uncertainty when it came to tyre selection for the race, with various alternatives going out on the track. Those who used the SC1 rear, which seemed to be the best option for the race as of yesterday, were penalised today to the favour of those who went with the SC0 instead, the compound chosen by all the riders who finished on the podium. In any case, we are well aware that there is still margin for improvement in Moto2. It will take a few GP rounds to set up the bikes so they are optimised and the riders will also need a bit of time to adapt to our tyres, but I’d say that they are already able to adopt a much more aggressive riding style than in the past and that is definitely a positive sign. As for the Asia Talent Cup, I think that the results seen on the track speak for themselves and the riders’ smiles at the end of the races is the best gift we could ask for.” 

· The Moto2™ class was the one where there was the most uncertainty in terms of tyre selection, with several front and rear combinations. Although the SC1 was the predominant choice in numerical terms (both front and rear), it was the SC0 that proved to be the winning selection at the rear, fitted on all three of the bikes on the podium. For the front, Lopez (1st) and Garcia (3rd) raced with the soft SC1, whereas Baltus (2nd) opted for the medium - the SC2.
 
· The choices in Moto3™ where more linear and unanimous, with almost all the riders choosing the SC2+SC2 combinations as the front and rear compounds. Only Matteo Bertelle (Rivacold Snipers Team / Honda), Nicola Carraro (LEVELUP – MTA / KTM), and Tatchakorn Buasri (Honda Team Asia / Honda) opted for the SC1 at the rear, whereas the only rider to go entirely against the crowd was Joel Kelso (BOE Motorsports / KTM), who preferred the SC1 on both the front and rear. 
 
· In Moto3™, the riders went much faster, with a race time that was half a minute lower than 2023. Tatsuki Suzuki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP / Husqvarna) did the race fast lap on his third time around the track at 2'03.135, breaking the race lap record by more than two seconds.