THREE-HOUR RACE HITS TYRE SNAG

Race distance shortened after issues with Dunlop’s revamped rubber

The Autosport 3 Hours has been reduced to one hour at Snetterton this weekend as tyre supplier Dunlop moves to solve an issue with its Chevron rubber.

A lack of entries for the Guards Trophy enduro has led to the reduction in race length, and an issue with the front tyres on the pacesetting Chevron B6s and B8s is one of the contributing factors. Dunlop moved its historic tyre production from the UK to Portugal two years ago.

Dunlop’s marketing and communications manager James Bailey said: “We always try and make the tyres the same, but when you move to a new factory it can be a couple of iterations before it’s there.

“We had an issue with the front tyres at Zolder. It wasn’t a safety issue, but the handling was inconsistent. We hope to have it addressed by August.”

Bailey also explained the situation causing supply issues for certain types of tyre in historic racing: “There is a size of tyre we have not been able to produce yet. So far this year we have supplied more historic tyres than we have for the last three years, but there has been a spike in demand for certain tyres.

“We have been able to supply 98 per cent of demand and we will be increasing production in order to meet demand. We expect it to stabilise in the second half of the year. We’re committed to historic motorsport – it’s an important part of what we do.”

Guards Trophy organiser, the Historic Sports Car Club, and other clubs have relaxed their tyre regulations in order for competitors to use other suppliers where possible.