16
July
2018
|
08:14 AM
Europe/Amsterdam

Dunlop announces ELMS Red Bull Ring tyre options

Dunlop announces ELMS Red Bull Ring tyre options

  • A & B tyre options nominated for all Dunlop ELMS teams in Austria
  • Porsches expected to challenge Ferraris in GTE
  • Red Bull Ring ‘stand out;’ track of season

On July 22nd the 4 Hours of Red Bull Ring gives teams the opportunity to score more points in the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) at the third of six events on the 2018 calendar. The race follows the FIA World Endurance Championship’s  24 Hours of Le Mans, won by a Dunlop-shod WEC team but where ELMS competitors Graff and United Autosports took second and third places in the LMP2 class.

Austria’s Red Bull Ring provides Dunlop tyre designers the challenge of having very different characteristics to the other tracks on the calendar. The track stands out because of the different demands compared to the typical high speeds and high loads found elsewhere. As such, car set-ups are expected to be significantly different to the previous rounds to combat the lower speeds/lower grip, so Dunlop engineers will be working hard with each team to find the optimum settings for the different chassis, driver and tyre option combinations. In LMP2, the A and B (soft and medium) options will be available, as featured in the previous rounds. The all-Dunlop LMGTE class also have A and B options to choose from in the dry. 

Last year’s race was won by United Autosport’s Ligier, so there is every chance that the Oreca stronghold of 2018 could be broken. In the LMGTE class, the last three years have seen Ferraris claim the win at the Red Bull Ring, but the new Porsche chassis competing in 2018 is thought to be a strong match for the track characteristics. With that added threat, standings leader JMW Motorsport could see a strong challenge from the three Porsche teams behind.

Currently the top three teams in the standings have chosen to compete on Dunlop tyres, with G-Drive Racing topping the table. G-Drive Racing and Racing Engineering have won the first two rounds of the year. In the GTE class, JMW Motorsport top the table having won the first round while #55 Spirit of Race won the last race at Monza.

Mike McGregor, Dunlop Manager Testing & Track Support

“This year has seen some fantastic sportscar racing, and with Red Bull Ring’s characteristics we could have some interesting results. It would be good to see one of our Ligiers or Dallaras and a Porsche on the top steps to make the series even closer to take us to the mid-point of the season. We’re looking for our 24thconsecutive win, but I’m sure our competitors will be working hard to break that record, and we will be doing everything we can to claim that overall victory.”

The race starts at 12.00 CEST on Sunday 22ndJuly. 

A full entry list including Dunlop teams can be found here

2018 European Le Mans Series Statistics

  • Top 3 LMP2 on Dunlop tyres – 1:G-Drive Racing (Oreca – 37 points), 2:TDS Racing (Oreca - 36), 3:Racing Engineering (Oreca - 35)
  • 2018 LMP2 race winners: Racing Engineering (Oreca - Le Castellet), G-Drive Racing (Oreca - Monza)
  • Top 3 LMGTE – 1:JMW Motorsport (Ferrari -  37 points), 2:Ebimotors (Porsche - 31), 3:Proton Competition #88 (Porsche - 29)
  • 2018 LMGTE winners – JMW Motorsport (Ferrari - Le Castellet), Spirit of Race #55 (Ferrari - Monza)

2017 4 Hours of Red Bull Ring

  • Winners: United Autosports (Ligier) , Spirit of Race #55 Ferrari(LMGTE)
  • Fastest LMP2 lap: Roussel/G-Drive Racing – 1:20.177
  • Fastest LMGTE lap: Griffin/Spirit of Race – 1:29.147

Dunlop LMP2 2018 Tyres

  • Full new range - A, B & C slick options plus intermediate and full-wet
  • New profile, construction and compounds
  • Target on reduced warm-up time, improved consistency, performance, feel and feedback

Dunlop LMGTE 2018 Tyres

  • Full new range – A & B slick options plus intermediate and full-wet
  • New profile, construction and compounds
  • Target on improved drivability, wider operating windows along with improved consistency and a major improvement in overall dry performance