The Bridgestone Potenza Sport is a belated launch product that sort of fell victim to the post- Covid pandemic blues.
It was launched in November 2021 but the ‘iffy’ market situation then didn’t allow Bridgestone Tyre Sales (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd to go to town in spreading the latest product awareness.
Following the 2022 introduction here of the Lamborghini Huracan STO that came with the Bridgestone Potenza Sport as an OE (Original Equipment) tyre, Bridgestone Malaysia deemed it a good time now to drum up further attention to this tyre.
Better late than never and there we were, assembled at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC) for a media impression of the Potenza Sport’s potential in braking performance, steering prowess and grip.
The Potenza Sport takes over as the flagship tyre from the Potenza S007A that was launched here during pre-pandemic times.
As a result of this Covid pandemic situation, we had our first tyre impression drive that didn’t feature a product performance comparison either with the tyre it replaces or rival products.
Instead, the event was all about keeping the focus on Potenza Sport’s improved merits and enjoying its dynamic high-performance qualities.
Bridgestone highlights the Potenza Sport key features in its high-speed stability, excellent braking performance and ultimate wet performance.
It begins with a sporty carcass package to maximise dry handling performance and steering response while optimising rolling resistance.
This is followed by the variable rib profile for the tyre tread pattern that provides a more efficient road contact pressure and higher wet friction.
Further to this is the optimised distribution of ribs and voids to maximise water evacuation, cornering power and better braking potential.
Playing its role too are Bridgestone’s innovative 3D sipes that increase the tyre’s sheer stiffness and offer benefits in braking and abrasion resistance.
This new feature is said to offer up to 102% braking potential over the previous 1D sipes (100%); this refers to the small slits along the tread ribs.
Lastly, there is the asymmetric wall angle of the tread blocks that Bridgestone says increases lateral stiffness and reduces block deformation.
Compared to the S007A, the Potenza Sport’s high-speed stability is better by 5%, dry braking by 2%, wet braking by 7%, wet handling by 5%, wet cornering grip is most improved by 14%, dry handling by 5% and comfort is up 10%, while the noise level remains the same.
Our first Potenza Sport experience in Sepang was the wet and dry braking routine; as it rained rather heavily before we arrived at the circuit that morning, it was a bit compromised.
In the wet braking session (done in a Mercedes-Benz C300), we came to a stop consistently over two runs gauged by the cones alongside the braking area.
In the somewhat dry braking run (done in a BMW 530i), the stopping distance was one and a half cone distance shorter for both runs.
The slalom run was organised for us to feel a better steering response and this was done in a Volkswagen Golf GTI.
It was a timed trial and although we weren’t among the faster media people, the Potenza Sport steered well for us to push the Golf GTI quick enough through the slalom section.
Our last outing was the dynamic drive over two laps on the south section of the SIC in a BMW 330i.
Cones were placed along the circuit to guide us on the braking points and best cornering lines for the respective corner.
We got more exuberant on the second run and our decision not to brake for one of the corners as we felt the speed was too low proved disastrous.
We found ourselves drifting wide as we had obviously gone beyond the car’s handling and tyre’s grip limits with the high cornering speed.
The damp grass that we drove onto as we went off the track offered absolutely no grip and as much as we tried to correct the fishtailing drama, the Bimmer’s active safety functions probably saved the day.
Unscheduled excitement aside, the dynamic drive experience gave us a positive insight into the good handling grip that the Potenza Sport delivered within rather high-speed limits.
Bridgestone Malaysia has made available 44 sizes of the Potenza Sport, which is imported from Poland, in sizes ranging from 18 to 22 inches.
Be prepared to pay a premium though as the cheapest variant starts from above RM900 and goes beyond RM2,000 for the top 325/35 R22 size.
