Press Release

Pirelli Extends Partnership with Youthstream for the FIM Motocross World Championship and Remains Official Tire Supplier Until 2019


Since 1980 the Milan-based manufacturer has captured 66 World Titles thanks to the performance of the SCORPION™MX32™ range, which continues to maintain its dedication to off-road competition

MILAN, Italy (May 16, 2017) ­– Pirelli has reached an agreement to renew its partnership with Youthstream, the organizer of the FIM Motocross World Championship, in order to continue its role as the Official Tire Supplier of the most prestigious international series for off-road motorcycles, until the end of the 2019 season.

Pirelli’s commitment and success in the FIM Motocross World Championship is renowned and the Milan-based manufacturer is the only tire manufacturer able to boast Hall of Fame statistics with 66 World titles (since 1980) in this Championship. The success comes with the incredible performance of the SCORPION™ MX32™, which has cleared great achievements throughout the world. Taking a close look, we can reasonably state that the history of the Motocross Champions of the last 40 years has been and continues to be a Pirelli prerogative, winning numerous titles with the most important representatives of such discipline. Most noticeably seven World Championships with Belgian legend Stefan Everts, five with the Italian Antonio Cairoli, nine (three each) with the Belgian riders André Malherbe, Eric Geboers and Jöel Smets and three more titles captured with British rider David Thorpe. The most recent three titles were conquered with the Dutchman Jeffrey Herlings and twice with the Slovenian Tim Gajser. Those are just a few of the riders who have relied on the performance of Pirelli over the years and have gone on to become champions.

Besides the relationships with the riders, the collaborative relationships that Pirelli has managed to establish with the motorcycle manufacturers has been crucial as well. 18 World titles have been won with KTM, 16 with Yamaha and another 16 with Honda, 10 with Suzuki, three with Husaberg and two with Cagiva, demonstrating the ability of the Italian company to produce tires for any manufacturer. In particular, since 2008 until today, Pirelli has won as many as 14 World titles with the Austrian-based manufacturer of KTM: five consecutive titles with Antonio Cairoli in MX1 and three with Jeffrey Herlings in MX2, one with Ken Roczen, Marvin Musquin and Jordi Tixier.

To get an idea of the effort and of the consistent work carried out by Pirelli, 7,000 tires were brought to the grand prix season, 1,700 of which were actually used, in addition to 1,200 mousses. From the beginning of the 2017 season, the Pirelli riders have already won 23 out of 24 races between MXGP and MX2! In the MXGP class, currently led by Antonio Cairoli, the first four riders in the ranking are equipped with Pirelli tires. In MX2, the first four riders are using Pirelli tires, including the series leader Pauls Jonass.

The first rider not equipped with Pirelli tires in the MXGP class is currently ranked sixth, with a gap of 62 points to the leader and in MX2 the first rider who is not using Pirelli tires is currently in the fifth position with a deficit of 69 points.

Giorgio Barbier, Pirelli’s Head of Moto Racing Activities, commented, following the renewal of the contract with Youthstream: “For Pirelli, the FIM Motocross World Championship continues to be a top activity in which we have always believed in and continue to do so, for this reason we have decided to renew our partnership with Youthstream until 2019. Particularly during the last few years, we have had the chance to witness and contribute to the exponential growth of this championship, which today features a large number of both riders and manufacturers. It also offers great media coverage, not only in the Europe, but also in Asia and in South and North America and it features 19 rounds, six of which are held outside of European territory. This World Championship is an exceptional stage for us to create brand awareness in some Countries that are very important for our business and, at the same time, a perfect proving ground to develop the tires that we continue to constantly improve and achieve a high level of success with.”

David Luongo, Vice-President of Youthstream and Head of Operations, stated: Pirelli shares the same vision of what is to be a World Championship, to be a global brand on all the continents and we want to thank them for being with us for so many years. This renewal for a long-term collaboration will help us to continue the opening of new markets for the MXGP World Championship. This has always been a target for Youthstream and thanks to the interest and investment of such a fantastic partner, MXGP will retain its same vision for years to come.”

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