Pirelli's SUPERCORSA V2 (SC) was the most popular high-grip tire for grooved circuits. This year's SUPERCORSA V3 (SC) is the latest evolution of the V2. We've got some first-hand review of the new SUPERCORSA V3 (SC) from Webike's racing staff!
Review condition
Place: Tsukuba Circuit 2000
Race: Tsukuba Tourist Trophy
Class: MIP
Results: 1st place in qualifying, class winner in the final (3rd place overall)
Best time: 1'00.947
Vehicle: BMW S1000RR
Tire Spec: SC1
Date: 20 April 2019
Weather: fine
Temperature: 20 degrees Celsius
Track: Dry
Tire internal pressure (warm)
Front 2.2kpa
Rear 1.9kpa
What is SUPERCORSA?
The SUPERCORSA is a 'grooved racing tire' designed to help the latest motorcycles in the World Superbike Championship set the fastest laps. The SUPERCORSA is the most popular tire in the world and is used in grass races all over Japan to shave lap times. The V3 was originally designed to be used on the Panigale V4 by Ducati. 
The difference between SUPERCORSA SP and SC
The difference between the SP and SC SUPERCORSA is always a problem for new riders. Although they look exactly the same, they are designed for different riding conditions. The SUPERCORSA SC is the FIM racing tire with grooves, while the SUPERCORSA SP is the high-grip version of the SC for road use. The SUPERCORSA SC and SP are FIM standard grooved racing tires.
This time, the tire we are going to review is the SC for the track.
Evolution from V2 to V3
The left one is V2 and the right one is V3, and they look very similar, but if you look closely, you can see that the angle and length of the grooves are different.
The SUPERCORSA V2 is a force to be reckoned with, but with the V3 it's even better! First of all, a new compound composition has been used to enhance the grip, which was already very strong. Firstly, the new composition of the compound has made the grip even stronger than before, and secondly, the groove design, which at first glance is not so different from that of the V2, has been extended to the slick shoulder area with the "flash design" of the SUPERCORSA identity. This reduces the temperature dependence of the grooves, resulting in a quicker tire warm-up and more practical grip to take high loads and keep you moving forward. The result is a tire that has all the advantages of improved grip but without the weight of handling!
Ask the winning rider what it's like to use the SUPERCORSA V3 in a race
No matter what you say in words, what you want to know the most is what it actually feels like to use it, right? So this time, I'd like to introduce you to the Tsukuba Tourist Trophy's MIP class (large foreign motorcycle class.) which was held the other day. Our rival is the V4 Panigale. We asked Matsunaga, who won his class and 3rd place overall, to give us his thoughts on using the motorcycle in the race! For more information about the Tsukuba Tourist Trophy, click here.
The feeling of being able to turn at a glance is alive and well!
The V3 is the first model change from the V2 in almost six years. Like the V2, the V3 is a magical tire that feels as if it will collapse and turn on its own if you are careful with the brakes, even if you don't have the skill to collapse the tire and turn. The result is that the motorcycle turns in exactly the direction you are looking at, making it much easier to "turn". The first thing I noticed is that the front end is bigger than on the V2, so it feels a bit more up front. If you have a track and tire set up, you may need to re-set your suspension.
I can open the gun at the start of the day.
I found it to be more stable than the V2 in all areas from entry to exit. With the V2, I could open the throttle roughly in places where I would think "if I open the throttle at this bank angle, will it slide? With the V2, I can open the throttle roughly, even when I'm wondering if I'll slip if I open the throttle at this angle. I didn't feel like I was sliding at all and I was able to get more cornering speed than usual. In the race, I was actually able to break into the slick tire pack, which had more grip!
Definitely an improvement over V2!
If you decide on a suspension set to match the V3, you may be able to bring out the potential of this tire even more. I felt that I needed to drive differently from the V2 in all the points where I had to work harder on the brakes and start opening the throttle. I can't say anything about my life because I've only done seven laps of the race (the race was red-flagged after 10 laps). However, the new flush pattern of grooves seems to improve the response to lateral G's in addition to wear resistance, so the life may possibly be a little better than V2.
If you're serious about the track, go for the SUPERCORSA V3!
The SUPERCORSA V2 was the most popular tire on the circuit, but the V3 takes the best aspects of the V2 and takes them to a whole new level. We asked a number of riders who have raced on the SUPERCORSA V2, including our impressionist, what they thought of the V3, and they all agreed that it was 'a different evolution from the V2' and 'very good! Very good! The evolution of the tire has been very fast and there are a lot of unique and high-performance tires available from all the manufacturers, but it looks like the Pirelli SUPERCORSA is still the tire of choice for the track day racer!
Of course, you can buy SUPERCORSA V3 on Webike!
The SUPERCORSA are now available at Webike!
Click here for the DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC V3 for the track
