Newey: New McLaren Designed for Michelin Tyres

McLaren-Mercedes technical director Adrian Newey has revealed that the team's new car, the MP4-18, has been designed with a special effort to match the chassis with their Michelin tyres.

Last year's car, currently being raced by David Coulthard and Kimi Raikkonen in the guise of the MP4-17D, was based on a platform which worked well with tyres from former suppliers Bridgestone.

The current version of the machine has been honed to benefit from the Michelin tyres, which McLaren switched to at the end of 2001, but Newey believes this year's car will work its tyres even better.

"The new car has been designed for the Michelin tyre as the old car had a precedence that went back to Bridgestones," said Newey. "The rest of it is an evolution of the current car."

World Champions Ferrari have developed a crucial relationship with Bridgestone which saw them become the dominant force in the sport last year and a similar partnership between Michelin and McLaren could help them keep up their fight for the title.

McLaren said over last weekend that they do not plan to introduce the new car before the Canadian Grand Prix in June.