Pirelli Gets World Superbike Spec Tire Deal
Cycle News Staff | September 10, 2014
Photography by Gold & Goose
Pirelli will continue as the spec tire for the World Superbike Championship, the Italian tire company having son a tender that was held from July 28 to August 25. The agreement is for three years with the deal concluding at the end of the 2018 season.
Pirelli is currently in its 11th year of being the tech tire for the World Superbike Series and, according to Dorna, that’s makes them the longest running spec tire of any motorsports series in history.
“We are glad to continue with Pirelli for a further three years,” said Javier Alonso, the World Superbike executive director. “This renewal testifies our excellent relationship with the Italian company, a partnership for more than a decade that has always been strong with both the International Motorcycling Federation and the promoter and organizer of the series, and is clear evidence of Pirelli’s ongoing and constant ability to innovate and to offer products at the forefront of technology.”
Pirelli is also pleased to have won the tender.
Giorgio Barbier, Racing Activities Director of Pirelli’s Business Unit Moto and Head of Superbike project for the Milanese Company since 2001: “When we first believed in the single tire supplier solution to reduce the cost of motorcycle racing, some were reluctant and some feared that the quality of both the races and the tires would have been affected,” said Giorgio Barbier, activites director of Pirelli’s Business Unit Moto and head of the Superbike project. “This has not been the case, as the single tire supply allows the tire manufacturer to make developments, then available to all motorcyclists.”
