BFG back as Michelin's off-road racing brand

GREENVILLE, S.C., Oct. 4, 2016 ― Group Michelin has designated its BFGoodrich brand to represent the company's motorsports efforts at “rally-raid” endurance off-road racing events, starting with 2017 Dakar Rally, a two-week/5,000-mile odyssey through the Andes.

Michelin/BFGoodrich will be equipping as many as 300 vehicles competing in the 2017 Dakar Rally, including the factory-backed teams from France's Peugeot S.A. and Japan's Toyota Motor Corp., the company said.

With this announcement, the BFG brand is returning to the world of extreme off-road rally-raid competition on a large scale for the first time since 2012.

The 2017 Dakar Rally, set to run over two weeks and more than 5,000 miles of rugged Argentinina, Bolivian and Paraguan terrain, rolls off in early January in Asunción, Paraguay. The finish line will be in Buenos Aires.

BFG will support those using its tires through the BFGoodrich Dakar Service Center.

“BFGoodrich has a long-tenured racing heritage, and we're excited to continue our global involvement in racing in the dirt with our official return to the Dakar Rally,” said Michelin and BFGoodrich Motorsport Director Pascal Couasnon.

“Cross-country rally racing is a distinct challenge, and this race features some of the most complex terrains on the planet. As with other forms of racing where BFGoodrich competes, our commitment stays the same in this discipline.

“We continue to use all the technical information we learn in racing laboratories around the world to develop new technology and constantly improve our products while taking on the toughest conditions on Earth.”

The BFG brand will be Michelin's lead brand for the various rally-raid events throughout the year, a spokesman confirmed.

Peugeot recently unveiled its all-new challenger for the Dakar Rally, the all-wheel-drive 3008 DKR tube-chassis racer, while Toyota's designated team, Toyota Gazoo Racing, will field a Toyota Hilux Evo racer.

BFG has developed a special tire for the Peugeot and Toyota factory entries, the All-Terrain KDR2, a race tire designed specifically for cross-country rally racing that shares design characteristics with the BFG Baja T/A KR2.

The KDR2 is designed to be lighter and sports a different tread pattern for the increased handling demands of lighter-weight vehicles.

BFG will offer two other tires as well, depending on vehicle type and class:

• All-Terrain KDR — Similar to the KDR2 but designed to withstand the extra sidewall abuse found specifically with four-wheel-drive vehicles, such as the efforts of Toyota/Overdrive, Mini X-Raid and Mini ALL4 teams.

• Baja T/A KR2 — the tire developed for the Baja, Mexico, deserts that BFG expects will be suited to the two-wheel-drive buggies at Dakar. Its tread is designed to deliver maximum traction on soft ground, extreme protection against sidewall damage and balanced braking and cornering performance.

BFG was Michelin's designated racing brand for off-road rally-raids from the 1990s through 2010 and the world rally circuit from 2006 through 2010, when Michelin decided to put the Michelin brand at the forefront of these extreme motorsport series. BFG did continue as the featured brand in North American off-road racing, including the annual Baja 500 and 1,000-mile enduros.

BFG is producing the competition tires at its plant in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Michelin will continue to feature the Michelin brand in World Rally Championship action, which uses public roads, both paved and unpaved.