Michelin fighting to maintain advantage

Michelin was beaten comprehensively last season by the Bridgestone and Ferrari combination, but this year has come out fighting with new compounds and increased development with top teams McLaren, Williams and Renault.

"The pressure on us could hardly be greater," said Dupasquier. "We dominated the 2002 Malaysian Grand Prix - when Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya finished first and second for the BMW WilliamsF1 Team - and we have just recorded a magnificent 1-2-3 in Melbourne.

"Motorsport at this level is always difficult. Although we have upped our game since this time last season we are taking absolutely nothing for granted. We have identified a number of areas in which we can improve and the latest Formula 1 cars are still at an early stage of their development curve, so it is far too soon to be able to predict how the 2003 season will pan out."

Bridgestone believes that it could and should have won the first race in Australia after blocking out the front row of the grid with a Ferrari 1-2, but is confident that it can redress the balance in Malaysia. "We clearly had the advantage over our rivals in final qualifying, as the grid positions illustrate," said Bridgestone's director of motorsport Hiroshi Yasukawa, "however we are confident we can bounce back in Sepang.