There’s a growing rumor (if not fact) that Pirelli won’t be supplying the World Superbike Championship with tires after the 2012 season, and a piece of that puzzle has come forth today as Infront Motor Sports (IMS) has announced that it will be accepting bids from tire manufacturers to exclusively supply the World Superbike & World Supersport Championships, the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup, and the Superstock 600 European Championship for the 2013-2015 racing seasons.
While we don’t expect Pirelli to tender an offer, IMS has announced that the contract is open to any tire manufacturer who can “demonstrate top-level international experience and know-how in the supply of racing tyres within the framework of professional motorcycling racing championships.” Rumors suggest that Bridgestone has interest in supplying WSBK with its rubber doughnuts, which is interesting as the Japanese company is expected to announce its contract renewal with MotoGP in the coming weeks.
One advantage of having the same manufacturer supply both the top prototype and top production-based racing series with tires is that it will riders to move between the two series more effectively, as there’s currently a learning curve for riders on getting used to the different rubber provided for in MotoGP and World Superbike. However we wouldn’t discount a company like Michelin in making a bid, or even *gasp* Dunlop.
Source: WorldSBK
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