Austria Preview Quotes: Bridgestone

Hiroshi Yasukawa, Director of Motorsport: "We had a very successful outing at Barcelona which resulted in Michael (Schumacher) and Rubens (Barrichello) taking a fantastic win and third place on our tyres. Their achievement was witnessed in person by Bridgestone’s President and C.E.O Mr Shigeo Watanabe and he was delighted with the result. However, there is still much work to do and not just to maximise the potential of our tyres for Ferrari’s new F2003-GA. Bridgestone’s other four teams are a vital part of our F1 operation and we would dearly like to see them up there challenging for points next weekend."

Hisao Suganuma, Technical Manager: "Although very much a stop-go circuit because of the number of tight corners, the A1ring also means higher average speeds so we will be chasing not only good grip but also good heat durability. Understeer can be an issue in Austria and teams will need to take care choosing the best tyre and car set-up combination. We have had some very productive tests recently and in order to provide the grip needed for Austria we will consequently be taking several new compounds. These are from the current compound family but have not yet been used for a race in 2003.

"Our teams have also been invited by the FIA to have an extreme-weather tyre available. Bridgestone welcomes such a move, albeit a temporary solution for this year, and to assist our teams comply with the wishes of the FIA, we shall be providing them with such a tyre. The FIA has provided us with guidelines for these tyres and it is understood that they will not be used unless the race director has specifically informed all teams via the timing monitors that the weather conditions necessitate their use."