First Test for ‘Official’ Bridgestone F1 Tyres

Bridgestone Motorsport had its first outing in the capacity of official tyre supplier to the Formula One world championships between January 14 and 16, when nine of the eleven competing teams attended the opening test of the 2008 season at the Jerez circuit in Spain. A mixture of 2007 and 2008 specification cars were tested by a variety of race and test drivers through the field over the three days, and in keeping with the 2008 regulations, teams ran without traction control and used the standard ECU.

Mixed weather conditions greeted all teams present – BMW Sauber and Honda Racing opted not to attend – and Bridgestone’s dry weather medium compound Potenza grooved racing tyre dominated the proceedings. The wet and extreme wet racing rubber were not wholly relegated to the tyre rack, however; conditions on Monday morning and Wednesday provided an opportunity for their use. Afterwards, Bridgestone Motorsport Technical Manager Tetsuro Kobayashi spoke of the lessons learned at Jerez:

“This test was the first of the year after the break and it was good to see the teams back in action, some of which had their new cars. January and February are very much about the teams developing their new cars and we will see a lot of progress in this period. Our tyres are essentially the same as provided last season, so the teams already have a good understanding of how they work. Now all the teams have to do is optimise their new cars with our tyres, and whoever does this best will have the greatest opportunity when we reach Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix in eight weeks time.”

And will any changes be made to the tyres Bridgestone brings to Grands Prix this season? “We have yet to announce our allocations for races and there could be some changes from the tyre compounds we brought to particular races in 2007,” commented Kobayashi. “We have made a minor change to the tyre construction for all the compounds, but this is more of a refinement than a big difference. We have also adjusted our super soft compound and the difference should be seen in the races where this tyre is used.”

Despite 2008 being the second season in which Bridgestone has acted as the sole tyre supplier to Formula One, the new three-year contract as official tyre supplier formalises this arrangement. Should Michelin or any other manufacturer wish to again become a contender in motor racing’s premier championship, they must now wait until 2011.