Brawn still fears Michelin swing

Although Michael Schumacher has now taken the lead in the world championship after a brilliantly opportunistic victory in China, and Renault have not won since the Canadian Grand Prix in June, Brawn is well aware that there is little to choose between the two top teams.

And with tyres widely accepted to be the biggest factor separating Renault and Ferrari, he knows how quickly the momentum of the championship fight could swing one way or the other.

"It is down to the tyres," he said. "We have got to have the right tyres in the next couple of races, and we have got reasons to be optimistic. But it can still swing either way."

Bridgestone's technical manager Hisao Suganuma has said he is optimistic about his company's dry weather preparations for this weekend's race in Suzuka. But he has played down any suggestion that they will have an advantage in Japan because it is their home race.

"Well I am confident about the dry tyre performance in Suzuka," he explained. "We did the test at Silverstone and Mugello and that encouraged us a lot.

"But it is definitely not related to Suzuka being our home track. Yes it is located in our home country but it is just one of the F1 races on the calendar."