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This weekend sees Yokohama ADVAN head to its biggest weekend of the season
with the FIA World Touring Car Championship finale and the 54th Macau Grand Prix taking place on the streets of Macau.
Official
supplier to both championships, the Japanese company has provided
racing tyres to the Grand Prix’s grid for 25 consecutive years whilst
the WTCC finale will mark the end of Yokohama’s second season in
the sport.
With
both manufacturers and drivers championships still at stake, on-track
battles are set to be fierce in this weekend’s WTCC races with SEAT’s
Yvan Muller and reigning champion Andy Priaulx, driving for BMW,
currently joint leaders in the drivers standings.
“There’s
no real advantage between manufacturers as far as
tyres are concerned,” said Muller. “The difference is in the track; one
part of it is likely to suit my car better whereas another will
be good to someone else’s.
“I’m
really impressed with Yokohama, everyone knows how hard
it is to produce a competitive and reliable tyre at the highest level
of touring car racing, and they have done a fantastic job.
“To
enter the sport and replace an established racing tyre
manufacturer as they did in 2006 is no mean feat but Yokohama has
produced a great tyre. They have found the perfect balance between
performance and
equality.”
Six
drivers are still in the title fight with Augusto Farfus (BMW), James
Thompson (Alfa Romeo), Jörg Müller (BMW) and Nicola Larini (Chevrolet)
close behind the joint leaders. Macau’s street circuit will
provide a serious challenge to all drivers however, as Yokohama’s
Technical Consultant Ian Beveridge highlighted.
“Street
circuits are notoriously difficult for any racers as the
space available is so restricted,” said Beveridge. “Although everyday
tarmac can be more abrasive than what is found on permanent
circuits, the ADVANs tend to react in the same way regardless.
Challenges are a lot more likely to arise from cars hitting the walls
or each other,
than from any tyre issues!”
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