When Goodyear took control of Avon (via buying Cooper), it suddenly owned three historic brands: Goodyear, Dunlop and Avon. Goodyear then sold most Dunlop 4-wheel car consumer tyres in Europe, North America and Oceania to Sumitomo, keeping mainly motorcycle and certain motorsport rights. That pushes them to put their own Goodyear name on motorsport tyres, instead of promoting “Dunlop” for which they no longer have full road-tyre rights.

Hence Dunlop-branded historic competition lines are to be re-cast under Goodyear heritage names like Blue Streak and Eagle, and everything historic will be consolidated under the Goodyear corporate umbrella.

The new Goodyear branded Vintage and Historic ranges are technically identical to the outgoing Dunlop Vintage and Historic ranges. The only change that has been made is to the tyre branding engraved on the sidewall. The construction, materials, tread patterns and mould shapes used remains unchanged.

Photo ACO/Goodyear

The Goodyear branded products have been homologated by the FIA within Appendix K and now appear on the Historic Technical Tyre List (see the regulations tab at historicdb.fia.com). The Blue Streak range will cover pre-1980 competition cars, and the Goodyear Eagle branding will support historic categories from the 1980s to the present day. The FIA homologation for the Dunlop ranges will continue until all Dunlop stock in the market has gone. The Historic Technical Tyre List highlights the equivalent Goodyear branded tyres compared to the Dunlop ranges, e.g. Dunlop CR65 has become Goodyear Blue Streak 65. Appendix X to FIA Appendix K will be updated in due course to reflect this new branding.

This by is by no means out of sync with history, as Goodyear’s racing record is formidable in motorsport, from 368 Formula 1 victories to 14 overall wins at Le Mans and more BTCC victories than any other tyre manufacturer since the championship began in 1958. Goodyear has also been a tyre supplier to NASCAR for more than 70 years, and exclusive supplier to NASCAR’s three national series since 1997. “Our range now includes tyres from these eras of each of those championships. As we continue building Goodyear for

the future, expanding the Blue Streak range is about more than honouring our heritage, it’s about ensuring some of the most iconic racing cars ever built continue competing on the tyres that helped define their era,” commented Xavier Fraipont, Vice-President of Goodyear Racing. “The expanded portfolio broadens Goodyear’s coverage across the rapidly growing historic racing market, spanning everything from vintage American machinery to modern classic Le Mans prototypes and touring car icons,” he added.

In a footnote, Motor Racing Legends has just announced that they have partnered with Goodyear and their UK distributor, HP Tyres, to supply all MRL grids across the season.