I won't believe any of that article, because there's no data or even good explanations to go along with their claims.
All other factors being equal, wider casings exhibit less casing 'bulge' as a percentage of their cross-section and also have a shorter section of deflected sidewall. How big a difference are we talking about here? For an equivalent make and model of tyre, Wheel Energy claims the 25mm-wide size will measure five percent lower rolling resistance on average than the more common 23mm-wide one.
Did they use the same pressure in each tire? If so the test is flawed because either the wider tire is over-inflated or the narrow tire is under-inflated. Even if this is true, what's the limit? Is a 2.0" wide tire "faster" than a 23mm tire? (Because the 2.0" tire will be much heavier and less aerodynamic.)
Tread pattern matters, even on the road: The importance of tread pattern is no surprise to the off-road world but common wisdom often says it's a non-factor on pavement where slick treads presumably would deliver the greatest surface contact with the ground and thus, the best grip. However, asphalt is far from a perfect – or even consistent – material. In those cases, certain tread designs can provide some measureable mechanical adhesion with the ground.
I think this is pretty irrelevant to real life. Sure, on a certain stretch of pavement a certain tread pattern
might offer more grip. In all other circumstances it's just going to create noise and rolling resistance. Unless they want you to change your tires every time you enter a different type of pavement
