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'At the same tire pressure, >
The problem is: we don't use the same tyre pressure. 20mm , 23mm and 25mm tubulars should be all run at different pressures. On the track a 19mm tubular correctly attached to its rim using a non-elastic mastic (such as Shellac or industrial fabric adhesive such as Terokal 2444) and inflated to 10 bar will "perform better" than a 23mm inflated to 8/9 bar. It can be lighter, have typically better aerodynamics and show lower rolling resistance. There is good reason why Conti's no holes bared competition track tyre for wooden tracks, the Olympic, is 19mm. For events such as madison or on cement tracks one wants something with a bit more confort-- wider and lower pressure. That is why the Sonderklasse came in 23mm-- and with the Steher one could even get a 25mm. On the road it's a bit more complicated..
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EdwardZ
Dramatic_Hammer
The size of the contact patch for a pneumatic tyre is not affected by tyre width. In the words of Mr. Schwalbe , under the section 'Why do wide tires roll better than narrow ones?', 'At the same tire pressure, a wide and a narrow tire have the same contact area'. So the amount of 'tyre surface area touching the track' will be same on a 20mm tyre at 115psi as it would on a 23mm tyre at 115psi.