200 plus 2
Bridgestone celebrated its 200th race in Europe. That figure considers only the official involvement of the Japanese manufacturer since 1997 onwards. However, in the 1976 Japanese Grand Prix, Kazuyoshi Hoshino had Bridgestone tyres, and the same Hoshino as well as Noritake Takahara were on Bridgestones the following year at the same venue.
In the Belgian Grand Prix, Bridgestone will match Pirelli at 203 races; the Italian manufacturer stopped racing in Formula One in 1991. At the top of the chart, Goodyear participated in 495 races and stopped in 1998.
• Felipe Massa scored his 13th pole, moving up to the 20th all-time spot matching, among the others, his countryman Rubens Barrichello.