Monza: Ricciardo clocked at 362.1 km/h in his Red Bull

Monza is the circuit in the Formula 1 season where the highest speeds are reached, and during the Italian Grand Prix held last weekend, Daniel Ricciardo showed the fastest speed at the wheel of his Red Bull RB10. The Australian driver reached 362.1 km/h, an information revealed in a statement by Pirelli, the sole tire manufacturer of the F1 World Championship.

It’s an opportunity for the Milan manufacturer to boast about the merits of its tires capable of enduring the constraints associated with such speed without flinching: « A particular event occurred last weekend during the Italian Grand Prix. In Monza’s ‘temple of speed,’ Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo – winner of three races – took advantage of the slipstream effect to reach 362.1 km/h on the main straight. Quite simply the highest performance that will be recorded in 2014. At this speed, the wheel rotations are about 2800 rotations per minute, or 50 rotations per second. This extreme speed has a direct impact on the tires. As is customary at Monza when they operate at full load, Formula 1 cars undergo constraints of a ton due to aerodynamic downforce, while high speeds generate a high centrifugal force directly on the tire casing. »

Even though the top speed reached by the Perth native on the Milan suburb track remains slower than the official speed record for an F1 – 397.481 km/h set by Alan van der Merwe driving a BAR Honda on the Bonneville salt flats -, the speed record during a GP – 370.1 km/h set by Kimi Räikkönen driving his McLaren equipped with a V10 engine in 2005 at Monza – or the circuit speed record – held by Juan Pablo Montoya with 372.6 km/h set during private testing at Monza in 2005 with McLaren as well -, it allows Pirelli to reaffirm all the work necessary for its engineers to design tires capable of withstanding very high speeds.

« F1 tires are designed and developed with this objective in mind. During laboratory tests, long before they hit the asphalt of a circuit for the first time, they are exposed to constraints they might never encounter, such as reaching speeds of 450 km/h. They are also reinforced to withstand speeds over 250 km/h and undergo simulation of driving over curbs, such as those characterizing Monza. Faced with the unique conditions of the Italian circuit, Pirelli tires have risen to one of the most significant challenges by achieving the highest performances ever realized in the world of motorsport. »

This announcement is also an opportunity for Pirelli to reaffirm the importance of motorsports and the processes used which can then be applied to the road, though not necessarily to “everyman’s” cars, but rather to super cars produced in limited editions: « Such speeds are also achievable by Pirelli’s Ultra High Performance products, intended for the road and delivered as standard on most of the most prestigious super cars. Not only does the P Zero share its name with its Formula 1 counterpart, but it also shares the technology and design that make Pirelli tires unique. »