Michelin Ecstatic with Williams Performance

Ralf Schumacher's front row start - the German's best ever qualifying result in Formula One - highlighted Michelin's brilliant performance during today's qualifying session for the Brazilian Grand Prix.

In only its third race since returning to Formula One after 17 years, French tyre manufacturer Michelin continued to impress following a good performance during Friday's and this morning's free practice sessions. Schumacher's teammate Juan Pablo Montoya completed a successful day for the Michelin company, setting the fourth fastest time of the day.

"This is clearly a good performance and we are delighted for Ralf!" said Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin's Motorsport Director. "I think Juan Pablo could have been even higher if he had not gone off. Obviously the race is another matter, but for the moment we are very happy for the BMW WilliamsF1 Team to have both their cars on the front two rows. It was also very satisfying to see Juan Pablo quickest this morning.

“The split times are also very interesting and show the difference in the overall performance and top speeds of the respective teams. From a tyre point of view, Saturday does not always give us a clearer indication of how they will perform in the race, as obviously the teams are only going for one quick lap. However, it would seem that the performance is there, now we will have to see for the durability and what strategies the teams adapt. As we have always said, if one team can perform this well, obviously the tyre is up to the game."

The rest of the Michelin runners, however, were nos as brilliant as the Williams duo. Jaguar's Eddie Irvine and Luciano Burti could only manage the 13th and 14th times respectively, while Jean Alesi was 15th with the Prost.