Toyota and Bridgestone make deal official

While the switch from Michelin to Bridgestone was already confirmed by the senior team officials before, the two Japanese companies refrained from making an announcement until now.

Toyota entered Formula One in 2002 with Michelin, and the Cologne-based team were in fact a primary reason for the French tyre maker's return to the sport. But team principal Tsutomu Tomita said in a statement today the team felt Bridgestone was the right partner to take Toyota to the next level in F1.

"I am sure that our two companies will share a fruitful and mutually beneficial relationship over the coming years in Formula One," Tomita commented.

"After a rather successful 2005 season, our sights are now set even higher up the grid and we feel that Bridgestone is ideally suited to the technical demands of F1 in the future and will be the best match for our 2006 car.

"Toyota is serious about winning in Formula One and we feel that the switch to Bridgestone tyres is the best option in the medium-long term."

Hiroshi Yasukawa, Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, added: "This exciting new motorsport partnership between Toyota, one of the world's leading car manufacturers, and Bridgestone, the world's leading manufacturer of tyre and rubber products, is hugely significant.

"Our two companies have had strong motorsport ties for many years in GT racing in Japan and in IRL in the United States, producing many Champions together. We are extremely proud to now extend that relationship to our Formula One race programmes.

"The Toyota F1 Team is a very ambitious team with high aspirations and by choosing Bridgestone, tyre supplier to seven Constructors' and Drivers' Champions in the past eight years, the team has shown great faith in our technological capabilities.

"Bridgestone and Toyota have high expectations for the coming seasons and we look forward to a close technical partnership which will see us move forward together to achieve our respective goals.

"We also look forward to resuming working relationships with the team's race drivers, Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli, both of whom have spent much of their earlier careers on Bridgestone tyres."