I have not seen the article but I've heard about it. There was a similar comparison recently in (if I remember correctly) Sport Auto. The Sport Auto came up with similar results but the difference was less dramatic.

My question with both of these articles is whether the testers tuned each of the tyres to the correct operating temps to get maximum results. As I understand it, the Cup tyre is a colder tyre. It needs less heat. That means that it is at optimum more quickly. It is quite possible that the Corsa was never at optimum. Now with a heavier car maybe that situation would be different??

My concern with high speeds is not performance. No difference there I would assume. My concern is with safety. These tyres are designed to retain heat more so as to get up to temp. This can be dangerous at sustained high speed use as the tyre can overheat. They also recommend lower pressures for the same reason. Again dangerous at sustained higher speeds (Michelin even recommends using standard pressures for street usage).

So will standard pressures mean that the tyres don't get up to temp? Good question. If so then this favours the cooler tyre (the Cup tyre). But if more heat then this probably favours the Corsa a this is a hotter tyre.

I don't think absolute traction at the back is such a big issue. Rather it is balance front to rear. Better to have the optimum tyre combination than to have to mess around with detuning one end or the other.

Oh, the German tuners would never deliver their cars on "R" tyres simply because the manufacturer will not certify them for sustained high speed use. Remember that German rules require that the tyres be able to handle the top speed of the car.

My guess is that there probably isn't a lot of difference between the Corsa and the Cup tyre in absolute traction and the better question is which will suit your needs better. But from everything I've heard the Cup does have a slight edge on the Corsa at the moment.

Have you considered which might be the better in the rain? Or are you sure you will never need to think about this.

S.