NEWS
26.06.2009
Unique in the DTM: street circuit in Nuremberg
The race at the Norisring street circuit in Nuremberg traditionally is the highlight of the DTM season. This weekend, Europe’s most popular touring car series will have its third round there. At only 2.3 kilometres, the track requires utmost concentration of the drivers and is very demanding for the equipment. “At the Norisring, the focus is on the pressure because of longitudinal forces”, says Michael Bellmann, head of motorsport at Dunlop.
“The constant change between maximum acceleration and maximum braking is very challenging for the tyres.” On one hand, the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx has to provide maximum performance on the straights and on the other hand guarantee the best possible deceleration ahead of the corners, while very good traction is required while accelerating out of the narrow corners. And that over a distance of 80 laps.
Mission: Maximum grip for the “German Monaco”
“At the only street circuit in the DTM calendar, the surface can’t be compared to any other race track”, says Dunlop manager Bellmann. “At parts, it is very bumpy and has numerous ruts. The surface isn’t in one piece. At the same time, the surface at the Norisring has the least roughness of all DTM circuits, which means that the asphalt is very slippery.” Like all other street circuits, the track in Nuremberg hardly provides any natural grip. The grip only comes after the practice sessions of the race series in the course of the weekend. But the Dunlop engineers know about the particularities of the asphalt in the “German Monaco” and will give the Audi and Mercedes-Benz teams the best possible tips about how to cope with the racing version of the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx. In all areas of track, maximum contact between the tyre and the track has to be guaranteed in order to get maximum grip. In the process, the goal is to push the tyre onto the track as long as possible during every lap by means of an optimal spring and shock absorber setting, without losing the contact to the road surface because of the many bumps.
Contrarily to other race tracks, engineers at the Norisring don’t have to make any compromises in terms of car set-up and can totally focus on getting maximum grip. In Nuremberg, the DTM cars are running with little camber and the tyre pressure will be adjuste accordingly. In the weight distribution, the focus is more on the rear axle, especially to ensure improved acceleration after the slow negotiation of the corner. Anyone who has the best traction here can get an advantage and pull a gap over the opposition.
