Dunlop Tyres recently announced the introduction of a new, US-built Superbike control tyre which will make its Australian debut in the 2012 season of the Australian Superbike Championship series and Pro Stock 1000 categories.

The Dunlop KR448F and KR449 slicks made their successful introduction to racing in April 2011 in the US, and have already proven their worth with a number of wins in the WERA National Endurance Series Championship.

Dunlop has been the control tyre supplier to the Australian Superbike Championship for the past two years, and Dunlop’s Motorcycle & Motorsport Manager, Ken Wieden, was pleased to announce the introduction of these new tyres to the series.

“We are proud to be associated with IEG and the Australian Superbike Championship, and look forward to an exciting series in 2012 on our new race slicks as the new control tyres,” Wieden said.

“We are confident in the performance of these new products which are the result of extensive development work and Dunlop’s close involvement in superbike racing.”

The Dunlop KR448F and KR449 tyres are dimensionally identical to the famous UK-built Dunlop N-Tec KR106 and KR108 that has dominated Australian road racing for many years.

Comprehensive local testing has been completed on the new tyres with Honda and Suzuki that showed consistent wear, durability and lap times.

“The new KR448F and KR449 slicks have been extensively tested and display terrific performance across all areas, particularly in speed and durability,” Wieden said.

“They also contain the same advanced N-Tec, MT (Multi Tread) and IRP (Intuitive Response Profile) technology that has proven so successful in other Dunlop road racing tyres.”

The new slicks are a result of extensive research and development at Dunlop’s Buffalo based US facility, using experience gained in international road racing and also Dunlop’s involvement with the AMA Pro Racing series.

The Dunlop KR448F and KR449 tyres will be used in all 2012 Australian Superbike Championship rounds except for the Superbike class at Phillip Island, where the existing UK– built KR106 and KR108 will continue to be used due to the extreme demands at this circuit.

The new slicks will be available in 125/80R17 and 200/55R17 sizes to Australian Superbike Championship competitors from early January 2012.

The QBE Australian Superbike Championships will be contested over seven rounds across four states on the 2012 calendar.