Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Team Valvoline EMGO Suzuki’s Vincent Haskovec shredded a DOT-labeled Michelin Pilot designed for a GSX-R600 and run on Haskovec’s GSX-R1000 during testing today at Daytona International Speedway. Haskovec did not crash and rode back into the pits following the incident.

“We had a 600 tire that was pretty shredded up,” said Valvoline EMGO Suzuki Crew Chief Keith Perry. “AMA said we couldn’t bring a 600, and those guys (Michelin) wanted us to test 600 tires. So we put one on a 1000 with a 600 wheel and tested it. They wanted to see how long it would last, and it lasted nine laps on a GSX-R1000. We shredded it up pretty bad, but we didn’t have anything that lost air. We also chunked another 600 tire and had a chunk come out of a 1000 tire on the 15th lap. Both of the 1000 long-distance runs we made, his fastest lap was on the 15th lap.”

A 16.5-inch rear slick tire on Eric Bostrom’s Ducati also lost tread during testing of various compounds and constructions, including qualifying tires. The tire did not lose air and Bostrom did not crash.

“That’s testing,” said Michelin’s Jim Rhodes when asked about the problems, including Bostrom’s. “There’s a difference between colds and heart attacks. We had colds, Dunlop had a heart attack. There’s a big difference between rubber coming loose or chunks coming out of a tire and a catastrophic failure.”