The single question most serious autocrossers want answered: Which tire will be fastest on concrete?
Sure, 80% of autocross events around the country take place on asphalt, but the Big Show–the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships–runs on the concrete expanse found at Nebraska’s Lincoln Airpark.
And that unique surface makes a difference in how a tire operates. Concrete autocross sites, though, …
Yokohama Advan A052
Our test mule has competed pretty much exclusively on the Yokohama A052 for the past three seasons, so both the setup and driver familiarity are biased toward it. Given that, it’s no surprise that Vivek cracked off three laps all within a tenth.
Not perfect runs, though. He did have a small slip on the first pass near the finish, which likely cost some time. Running back-to-back for the second pass, the now-warm tires were not quite as precise. We then sprayed and reset pressures for the third run, but the initial crisp feeling of the first-run cold tire was gone. Typical A052 performance–get it done early.
Vitour Tempesta P1 X-01R
With its new-for-2026, autocross-specific compound, the Vitour X1 delivers similar performance to the original track-focused P1 but without the need to add energy for compound activation.
On the first launch, the car didn’t hook as well off the line as the A052 and lost a little time on the initial straight. Further, steady state sweeper grip was not quite up to the Yokohama level, and a lack of front-end precision in transitions was also found. Turning earlier cured the transitions on the second run, but a couple of slalom cones were hit in the process. Spraying the tire before the third pass had no effect on the feel, but no cones were hit this time as driver familiarity increased.
Bridgestone Potenza RE-71RZ
All three passes on the Bridgestone Potenza RE-71RZ were the quickest of the day, and driver feedback was full of praise. Noted was the highly responsive front end, enabling precise slalom and offset execution. The tire did seem to want a little energy for full grip, as wheelspin was present on the initial launch. Later video analysis showed this to be worth 0.15 second.
The tire was fully on for the second and third runs, but small mistakes in each cost some time. Of the three tires tested, the RZ is clearly the outlier on response.
Yokohama Advan A052 (retest)
To bracket our testing and determine if surface evolution or driver improvement had sullied our results, we again mounted up our test Yokohama A052s. This time, though, a couple more tenths were gained over the first cold-tire run–at the expense of two slalom cones hit. But the two follow-ups again fell back to status quo for a warm A052. This gave us confidence in our data.
Analysis
We always say that our testing is not absolute. It’s just one data point that can be used alongside others for guidance in your own testing program. That’s why we’re happy with this follow-up data point to our track testing. And this time, we found a real difference.
After a decade, the reign of the Yokohama A052 may finally be over. The Bridgestone RE-71RZ simply handles heat better, giving more bites at the apple for less consistent drivers. It’s also more precise in transitional maneuvers, though it does require recalibrating your inputs.
The Vitour X1 was also right there in the mix, delivering on its promise of being an autocross version of a P1. And it does come in some unique, motorsports-friendly sizes that may provide an advantageous fitment in some applications. But it just didn’t have quite the mid-corner grip as the others on this day and on this car.
The grip deficit may have been from the more extreme camber settings used to support the A052’s needs. Vivek’s car sports 4° at the front, while the GRM Triple Threat ND used for our track testing only has 3°. Both the P1 and X1 are known to prefer less camber than other tires, but either way, we have three major contenders for this year.