Canada: Michelin wary of resurfaced circuit

By Michelin Sport
June 7 2005

The Formula One world championship begins its mid-season North American tour this weekend in Montreal, Canada, with Michelin chasing its ninth straight win.

Unbeaten so far in 2005, Michelin's dominant run stretches back to Brazil last October. In addition to winning the first seven races of the campaign, Michelin's partner teams have recorded 18 podium finishes (from a possible 21), scored 242 of the 273 available points and annexed 49 of 56 top-eight finishes.

The Canadian Grand Prix was first staged in 1967 and has featured on the calendar for all but two seasons since. This year's event will be the 37th to count towards the world championship and the 27th in Montreal. The race has also been staged twice at Mont Tremblant, 90 miles north of its current home, and eight times at Mosport Park, Ontario.

The Montreal circuit is located on the picturesque Ile Notre Dame, which lies between the St Lawrence River and St Lawrence Seaway. Originally built to host the 1967 World Fair, the Ile Notre Dame was also the setting for rowing events during the 1976 Olympic Games. The racing circuit was built two years later.

The track is named after legendary Canadian Gilles Villeneuve, who won the inaugural F1 race here on October 8 1978 - at the wheel of a Michelin-shod Ferrari 312 T3. Jacques Laffite, Nelson Piquet and Ralf Schumacher have also won the Canadian GP on Michelin tyres. In last year's corresponding fixture Jenson Button was Michelin's leading finisher, in third place.

"In common with certain other circuits on the calendar, Montreal features a blend of high-speed straights, tight corners and heavy braking zones," says Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin Motorsport Director. "Drivers negotiate the chicanes at relatively low speeds - about 50-75 mph - and it is vital to gauge your traction control settings correctly to optimise exit speeds onto the long straights.

"The absence of quick corners and the frequent need for hard acceleration places a great deal of emphasis on rear-tyre performance - and the possibility of hot ambient temperatures increases the potential strain. You have to take care not to let the rear wheels spin too much, because that accelerates wear rates. To counter this phenomenon, we will offer our partner teams tyres with fairly stiff sidewall constructions.

"The Montreal circuit has been completely resurfaced since last season. Our engineers have taken a look at the track and their research indicates that the asphalt won't be particularly abrasive. That said, it is completely new and has yet to be tested by any racing cars. It is likely that track conditions will evolve significantly throughout the weekend, largely due to the chemical reactions that are an unpredictable by-product of any freshly-laid surface."