Jorge Lorenzo’s helmet issues through the 2015 season have finally caused him to switch brands. The Spaniard today announced he has signed a contract for the next three seasons with the French helmet maker Shark. Shark have a long history in MotoGP and World Superbikes, having supplied many top riders such as Olivier Jacque, Carl Fogarty, Randy De Puniet, and Troy Corser. They currently support Aleix Espargaro, Johann Zarco, the Lowes twins Alex and Sam, Tom Sykes, Sylvain Guintoli, Scott Redding and Miguel Oliveira, among others. As such, Shark is an established name in motorcycle racing and a known quantity.

Lorenzo had the chance to extend his contract with HJC, the Korean helmet manufacturer he had been with for the past three years. But Lorenzo suffered a number of issues with his HJC during the 2015 season which caused him to reconsider. At Qatar, he dropped from the leading group after a helmet liner came loose and obscured his vision. At Silverstone, he failed to fit the breath deflector, and suffered severe fogging during a very wet race. This was not the first time he had suffered fogging in the wet, though the issue was made much worse through his own decision not to use the breath deflector.

In the press release issued, Jorge Lorenzo thanked HJC, and in particular, the Hong family, for their support over the past three years. He said that he had been attracted by the path set out by Shark for the next three years, and to be involved in a new project. The full text (in Spanish) of the press release pronouncements by Lorenzo and Shark CEO Patrick Francois is available on the Motociclismo website, with an English version on the Crash.net website.

Source – https://motomatters.com/news/2016/01/04/lorenzo_switches_helmet_brands_signs_thr.html