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John Bolster Award: Michelin

French tyre manufacture Michelin has been honoured with a John Bolster Award for its contribution to and success in motor racing

Autosport Awards

The Autosport Awards are a series of awards presented by motor racing magazine Autosport to drivers that have achieved significant milestones each season. Some of the presentations are selected by the general public via a reader's poll.

Michelin's former competition boss Pierre Dupasquier collected the trophy from former Grand Prix driver Carlos Reutemann, who was one of the star attractions at the Autosport Awards.

Although Michelin supplied tyres to the winner of the first Grand Prix 100 years ago, it was Reutemann who delivered their first world championship race win in Brazil in 1978.

Looking back on that win, Reutemann said: "We were testing a lot in the winter of 1977 and 1978, and I had a very good impression of the tyres. In Brazil I made a big mistake, but I had enough of an advantage from the second guy."

Dupasquier, who had not met Reutemann for several years, said that that success was important for Michelin because it proved that radial tyres could be successful.

"When we tried like hell to prove that Michelin could do anything with radial tyres, our competitors said that with radials you could do nothing," said Dupasquier. "Ferrari helped us a lot and we closed the book - the proof was there."

Dupasquier, whose company left F1 at the end of the season, said he was sad that the tyre war was ending in Grand Prix racing.

"Our final achievement was racing at the top," he explained. "It was or is F1, if I am being political or not. There is no competition between tyres in F1 any more - but that is a different story.

"We wanted to go as far as a tyre manufacturer can go in developing a concept - and the achievement to win in F1 was great."

McLaren boss Ron Dennis later paid tribute to Pierre Dupasquier, who is getting the Legion d'Honneur, one of France's top honours, later this week.

"I want to thank Pierre," said Dennis. "His passion for F1 has been phenomenal. He is getting the Legion d'Honneur in a few days and he fully deserves it. His support of everyone over the years has been fantastic."

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