MOTOGP: Tire drama interrupts practice

Michelin and MotoGP officials will investigate a possible restriction on the use of medium-compound rear tires in Sunday's race in Argentina following problems in practice.

During the fourth practice session at Termas de Rio Hondo, before qualifying on Saturday, Pramac Ducati rider Scott Redding appeared to have a sudden tire issue at Turn 6. While the cause is unclear, part of the rear tire was among the debris that littered the circuit, as Redding was able to ride to a stop.

The session was red flagged to clear the circuit, and red flagged again shortly after it restarted, due to "safety conditions". Redding returned to the track after the initial restart on his spare bike, and after a lengthy second delay the final four minutes of the session were completed.

While riders are free to use Michelin's medium rear tire in the delayed qualifying session, MotoGP race direction member Loris Capirossi confirmed further investigation will be undertaken on Saturday evening before a decision is made for Sunday's race.

If a decision is made to park the medium rear tire, riders would be left with the hard compound to use.

Michelin said via Twitter: "We are analyzing what happened and will know more later. As yet there are no restrictions on the usage of tires for qualifying."

Originally on Autosport.com