Tyre pressures: Jorge Martin must now win races by at least 3-seconds?
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That’s because, while the first low-pressure punishment is simply a warning, if the Pramac Ducati rider again fails to meet the minimum pressures for 30% of a Sprint or 50% of a Grand Prix distance, he will receive a 3-second post race penalty.The nightmare scenario, for Martin and MotoGP as a sport, would therefore be if the Spaniard wins the title on track at the Valencia finale, only to be stripped of the finishing result and title due to a post-race tyre pressure penalty.As his good friend Aleix Espargaro found out at Buriram, the risk of receiving a time penalty is real.
The Aprilia rider became the first to commit a second low pressure offence since penalties were introduced at Catalunya, dropping him from fifth to eighth place in Thailand due to the +3 seconds added to his finishing time.A third breach sees the post race penalty rise to +6 seconds, then +12 seconds for a fourth offence.As such, Pramac are sure to run a conservatively high starting pressure for Martin in the six remaining races, although this will increase the risk of a loss of grip if his front tyre then overheats in traffic.But with tyre pressure tricky to predict (varying massively depending on if a rider is leading or following) the best way for Martin to be sure of keeping future race victories will be to win by a margin of at least 3 seconds…The trouble is, with MotoGP so close, Martin’s victory margins so far this season have been only: 1.840s (Le Mans Sprint), 2.468s (Sachsening Sprint), 0.064s (Sachsenring GP), 1.445s (Misano Sprint), 1.350s (Misano GP), 1.389s (Buddh Sprint), 1.390s (Motegi Sprint), 1.413s (Motegi GP), 1.131s (Mandalika Sprint), 0.933s (Buriram Sprint) and 0.253s (Buriram GP).Related Edwards: “That bike barbequed my nuts! Aprilia Cube ‘born bad’” Marc Marquez starts “last push” warns “Sepang will be tough”
By contrast, since reigning world champion and title leader Francesco Bagnaia is yet to receive a pressure warning, he can afford to risk using a starting pressure closer to the limit in the knowledge that his results are not currently in jeopardy.If Bagnaia continues to avoid a first tyre pressure offence, he could even theoretically run well below the limit throughout the (Sunday) Valencia GP season finale, in the knowledge that he will only receive a post-race warning…Bagnaia starts the final three rounds (six races) in Sepang this weekend with a slim 13-point advantage over Martin.Likewise, assuming Alvaro Bautista’s Sepang wild-card is only a one-off and he completes the Saturday Sprint above the minimum, the reigning WorldSBK champion could then afford to run low in Sunday’s race and accept a post-race warning.The minimum tyre pressures specified by Michelin, for safety reasons, are roughly 1.9 bar for the front and 1.7 for the rear. The exact values ‘may change from some circuits to others’.
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