Monza to Provide “Emotional” Final European GP for Bridgestone

Bridgestone is to supply its Potenza tyres to Formula One for the final time in Europe this weekend, when the 2010 season enters its final four races with a trip to Monza. The Italian Grand Prix offers the challenge of one of the highest top speeds, with long straights bringing low downforce configurations into play, thus putting greater mechanical stress on the tyres. The tyre supplier is bringing its hard and soft compounds to the track for what its Motorsport director Hiroshi Yasukawa says will be “a very emotional… race for us”.

“Italy is a country with a rich motor racing heritage,” he continues, “and one which Bridgestone has contributed to in the past. Italy is also a strong car producing country and we have a large factory, a sales office, a technical centre and a proving ground near Rome. An important target for our Formula One programme was increasing our brand awareness in Europe and participating in Grands Prix at superb venues like Monza has helped us with this goal.”

Hirohide Hamashima, director of Motorsport Tyre Development, looks forward to the challenges that will face the 2,000 tyres the company will take to Italy: “The layout of Monza means that teams run with low levels of downforce and this naturally affects the tyres. A greater reliance on mechanical grip is one consideration, and the lower levels of downforce are also relevant for braking stability.

“Before the chicane in Monza is one area where there is heavy braking from high speeds, so causing flat spots on the tyres can be a consequence of this. Teams will pay close attention to their weight distributions to assist their braking here. Monza is famous for its long straights and these have an interesting impact on tyre performance.

“They can serve to cool the bulk temperature of the tyres, but they can also highlight if the tyre pressures are not perfect. Too low a pressure and additional resistance is encountered and heat is generated in the tyres, too high and the grip is not as good through the corners.”