Michelin Excel in Drying Conditions

Despite missing out on pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix, it was clear that the Michelin tyre was more suitable for the drying conditions at Suzuka this morning, and the French manufacturer were pleased to see all their partners in all but two of the top 14 places.

"All our partners used dry-weather tyres during the decisive qualifying session," commented Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin motorsport director. "It was almost feasible to use dries towards the end of pre-qualifying, but one or two parts of the track remained definitely too marginal.

"The track had improved considerably by the end of the second session, but previously it was clear that Michelin’s dry tyres gave teams a significant edge in cool, slightly damp conditions."

Dupasquier revealed that both type dry-weather compounds will be used in the race today, and felt confident the tyre will perform well despite lack of dry running this weekend.

"Both of our dry-weather compounds will be used in this afternoon's race and, although they hadn't been tried prior to this morning's second session, our partners were able to make a confident choice thanks to their previous experience and our databank," the Frenchman said.

"It might have been an unusual weekend, but it has also been very interesting," Dupasquier added. "We have been able to try our latest extreme wets and intermediates, which have generated good performance."