A friend pointed out that there had been some issues with the local fuel supplied for the race bikes (not quite whiskey bottles from the side of the road, but not good), could have been the reason for Searle's crash:
It seemed Searle had made an unlikely but costly mistake, but after the race Searle tweeted that the crash was in fact, not his fault.
The team had been struggling with the local fuel they received all weekend and unfortunately for Searle, the bike cut out on one of the biggest jumps on the track and left him with a concussion and a broken wrist, ruling him out of the title hunt and the next few races. It is a bitter blow for Searle and the team who had worked so hard all winter.
But alarmingly Searle wasn't the only one to struggle with this issue. Arnaud Tonus' second race stall on lap one was not in fact a stall but the bike cutting out like it did with Searle. Luckily for Tonus is happened on a slow turn but it still ruined his race and cost him a lot of points in the championship. Dylan Ferrandis also suffered issues. But it wasn't limited to the CLS Kawasaki team.
The factory MXGP teams suffered as well. Qatar GP winner Gautier Paulin dropped from fourth to ninth on the last lap in race two, losing valuable points to title rival Cairoli in the process when his bike started misfiring.
Paulin said: “I like this track, and I like the hot weather, but today I’m frustrated as we had troubles with the fuel that the organizers provided to the teams, and that was dangerous. On the last lap of the second race I was unable to jump, and I think that the bike wouldn’t have done one more lap. I lost four positions and five points because of something which the team couldn’t control."
Clement Desalle was left furious after the second moto when he encountered similar issues after leading for 25 minutes, claiming he was 'risking my life out there.' It meant Cairoli won unchallenged and a frustrated Desalle lost more points to the defending champion. Kevin Strijbos dropped from fifth to fourteenth after the same problems. Not good.
From: Thailand GP Race Report | PulpMX
Regarding the fuel issue, please see the statement below from supplier, ETS
2014 March 10th
Dear teams, organization & federation
Due to the difficult political situation met in Thailand, the government has blocked all importation of the so called
"dangerous goods" like flammable liquids (fuel, cleaning sprays etc).
Facing problems with the racing fuel delivery in Thailand, The MXGP organization Youthstream & the transport company
SEL tried to find several ways to import fuels, in vain.
They have contacted ETSP, knowing it’s capability of importing goods in Thailand, in order to help finding ways for the
the FIM MX GP race # 2 Si Racha Thailand could occur.
ETS Racing Fuels distributor based in Thailand had only few drums of ESC 1933 (FIM regulated) in stock but not
sufficiently to deliver all teams.
From a technical point of view thanks to its higher octane numbers compared to a FIM fuel and great oxygen content,
JSK 8 (non FIM regulated) was the best fuel in stock already in Thailand with a sufficient available volume to cover
every team racing fuel needs. To concur with an equity spirit, it has been decided to make possible to supply every team
with this fuel at a very limited cost after the FIM issued a notice to Youthstream to allow this racing fuel to be used for
the MXGP Round #2.
It appears that several brands of motorbikes faced technical problems (vapor lock issues) on the last laps of the second
race on Sunday 9th
and are blaming the fuel JSK 8 while other bike brands didn’t meet any problem at all using
JSK 8.
ETSP would like to remind that weather conditions were extreme (Average Ambient Temp : 35°C, Direct sunlight Temp :
45°C ) and would like to give some technical facts:
Below the comparison of some characteristics of different fuels included JSK 8
Table 1
EU and US authorities make some regulations (respectively EN 228 and ASTM D4814) regarding fuels properties and
climate conditions to avoid vapor lock or volatility problems.
Vapor lock and volatility depends on some fuel parameters like distillation profile (D70) and vapor pressure, also called
RVP and which is measured at 37,8°C.
Volatility Index (VLI) could be express as VLI = RVP + 7xD70.
The higher the RVP and the higher D70, then the higher volatility Index is (more “volatile” the fuel is) and the more
prone to vapor lock the fuel is (Vapor Lock Protection Index is rated low).
It is shown in Table 1 that JSK 8 is one of the less volatile fuel (VLI : 654, RVP is low: 500 and D70 is low: 22) and with
the highest vapor lock Protection Index(64) in comparison to the most popular FIM fuels used by factory teams.
We have also compared in Table 1 the extrapolated behavior of a FIM regulated fuel at the lowest volatility versus the
FIM fuel regulations.
In order everyone can appreciate the results we’d like to explain that a significant VLI discrimination could be made
when there is a difference higher than 30 to 50 units.
From Table 1 values comparison, it might be concluded that if the “usual” fuels would have been supplied, vapor lock
problems would have been even more prevalent in such extreme temperature conditions.
The racing fuel JSK 8 has been extensively used in hot climate (Thailand & Middle east) without any problems for cars
circuit racing and other powersports like Jetski or powerboats.
In addition to extreme temperature conditions, the fact that problems occurred by the end of the race may suggest that
heat coming from the engine is one additional key factor as well for vapor lock. Local temperature around the fuel tank
or pipe could be much higher than the 45°C measured during the race.
That is the reason why some teams whose motorbikes are equipped with different fuel tank and pipe design didn’t
experience such vapor lock problems
In conclusion, JSK 8 was the best choice considering supply issues due to Thai authorities and for vapor lock
protection. Unfortunately, the conjunction of extreme temperatures, race duration plus bike design have led some
teams to experience vapor lock problems during the last laps of the second race.
ETSP is deeply engaged in international motorsport, dedicated to racing and recognized for its high quality products,
expertise and ethics, as such we will continue to provide the best customized solutions and services.
We hope this communiqué will soothe your concerns, ETS Racing fuels are definitely designed to meet customer needs
and best interests.
Dr Bruno Philippon Yann Labia
Technical Director Business Development Manager
For the full statement, including the table referred to, click through to
http://docs.mxgp.com/docs/2014/MXGP_Round_2-After_round_communication.pdf
