The Mugello circuit has become an iconic and unmissable venue in the FIM MotoGP World Championship, which it has hosted since 1976. Its layout, unchanged since its inception, is perfectly mastered by the riders. They also appreciate the peaceful charm of this remote but enchanting part of Tuscany. Located near Florence, the circuit is 5.245 km long and features a technical sequence of nine right-hand and six left-hand corners. It is also renowned for having the longest straight in the championship (1.141 km), which is a real showcase for pure speed.
"Mugello is undoubtedly the most technical circuit on the calendar, and the one where the speeds are the highest" explains Piero Taramasso, Michelin Two-Wheel Motorsport Manager." That’s why we are very attentive to the evolution of the race bikes and have scrutinised our tyre allocation to assess the possibility of providing a perfect package. Our analyses led us to confirm the Soft and Medium tyres for the front, but we made changes to the Hard tyre. Its tread is the same composition as the Medium, but we modified the internal structure of the tyre to provide more stability in the most critical phases of riding, such as heavy braking at very high speeds at the end of the long straight. In addition, the technical configuration of the circuit makes it one of the most challenging in the championship. The Mugello track combines fast corners both uphill and downhill, which generates significant and highly variable loads on the tyres. We have therefore selected tyres capable of maintaining the balance of the bikes, especially as grip levels are relatively modest due to the ageing asphalt. Finally, as the circuit is located in a wooded area, far from any built-up areas, temperatures can be cool in the morning. The ability of our tyres to quickly reach their optimum operating temperature will also be an advantage for this high-speed race weekend.”
To meet all the challenges of the Brembo Grand Prix of Italy, Michelin will provide its partners with three tyre choices (Soft, Medium, Hard) for the front wheel and two compounds (Soft and Medium) for the rear wheel. Given the higher number of right-hand corners, the rear tyres will be asymmetrical and reinforced on the right shoulder.
In case of rain, Michelin will supply its MICHELIN Power Rain range in Soft and Medium compounds for both front and rear tyres, with the same profile as the MICHELIN Power Slick range.
Records dating back to 2024
The lap record is held by Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) with a time of 1’44.504.
The lap record in the race (1’45.770) is held by Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team).
Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) set a new lap record in the Sprint race last year: 1’45.198 compared to 1’46.187 in 2023.
The reference times for the Tissot Sprint and the Grand Prix, which had improved significantly in 2024 compared to 2023, are 19’30.251 and 40’51.385 respectively.
Finally, the pure speed record is currently held by Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Pol Espargaro (KTM), who both reached speeds of 366.1 km/h.
The weekend programme
This year, the Brembo Grand Prix of Italy festivities will begin on Friday 20 June with a first free practice session (10:45am – 11:30am), followed by a second session scheduled for the afternoon (3:00pm – 4:00pm), which will allow the ten fastest drivers to go straight through to the second phase of qualifying (Q2). After a final free practice session on Saturday morning (10:10 a.m. – 10:40 a.m.), Q1 will allow two additional drivers to qualify, with the starting grid for the weekend being determined at the end of Q2.
The Tissot Sprint (11 laps) will start on Saturday at 3pm, and the Grand Prix (23 laps) is scheduled for Sunday June 22nd at 2pm.
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