Michelin Prepared to Supply Red Bull

Despite having more than the required number of teams, French tyre maker Michelin told Atlas F1 it was prepared to supply tyres to Red Bull Racing in 2005.

The Formula One regulations state that when there are two tyre makers in the series, each must be willing to provide tyres up to 60% of the teams, under reasonable commercial contract.

Michelin, who provided six of the ten teams in 2004, have recently signed on Sauber, after Ford announced it would be selling its Jaguar Racing team. After Red Bull said earlier this week that they have purchased the Milton-Keynes team, Michelin's head of competition Pierre Dupasquier told Atlas F1 his company is willing to provide the newly-owned team with tyres next season, for a fixed price.

"We are currently in discussion with them, because we've been asked by Ford, before they sold the team, to accept the possibility of supplying whoever buys it with tyres if needed," Dupasquier said in an exclusive interview, published today on Atlas F1.

"We accepted that, because we were asked by Ford. Now that they sold it to Red Bull, we will keep our word, especially since the management and staff are still the same, so it's basically the same team.

"I admit that for us it's not the same challenge, because it's not backed by Ford, but they have asked us and so we made Red Bull an offer, and they have to decide on it very rapidly, because they're supposed to run next week in Barcelona. But so far nothing is done."

Dupasquier confirmed Red Bull would be required to pay for their tyre supply, stating Sauber too would pay for their tyres in 2005. But, he added, "we don't want to abuse it, to make money from it, we're just trying not to spend more money - and the price we ask is our normal rate."

Read the interview with Pierre Dupasquier in this week's Atlas F1 Magazine issue