While auto racing from the untrained eye looks like organized chaos, the truth known by those involved with the sport is anything but. Races are won and lost by tenths of a second and the slightest of missteps and inferior technology on the vehicle.
Pirelli has long been embedded with all forms of auto racing and has a meticulous process for ensuring their tires are top-notch and built with the latest technology. Pirelli’s Head of Indoor Testing Diego Sabato gave sports technology fans an inside look (in the video below) at the facility and all that goes into the process of taking the tire from design to the race track.
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The first step of the tire is to develop a 3D drawing of the design and implement all the cuts that are needed for the tires movements on the race track. Sabato described his production staff as “half technician and half artist” as the process for designing and implementing the 3D design involves a lot of specific knowledge combined with artistic skills to make sure the cuts are accurate.
The process for these tires is ongoing and the Pirelli team is always looking for additional ways to evolve their tires. They place their tires into a simulation of race environments and can control torque and pressure to see how it responds to all the different potential racetrack conditions it may face.
The last step the crew does is also place the tires in extreme conditions that aren’t likely found on any racetrack, but are tested nonetheless. Tire malfunctions are a significant safety risk so it is of the utmost importance for the crew that the tires can survive in the most extreme conditions. These tests are constantly evaluated and the Pirelli team continues to try and push the limits as far as they can to put their drivers in the safest position on the race track.
It sometimes is lost on fans how much preparation goes into every little aspect of every sport that we all love to attend and watch and Pirelli’s efforts to infuse as much engineering and technology into their tires is an interesting eye opener to the racing industry and what it takes to get a car ready for the track.