Brazil: Michelin's Nick Shorrock looks ahead

By Phil Huff
October 18 2006

As we head into the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend, Michelin's Formula One Director, Nick Shorrock, took some time to answer a handful of questions about the last race of the season, and the last race for Michelin.

What tyres are you preparing for Brazil?

We are finalising the specifications at the moment, and we will go to Brazil with ten different types of tyre. They need to respond to some very specific challenges, as the region around Interlagos can hold some surprises in terms of the weather. The track surface is not as abrasive as Suzuka, so we have chosen medium hardness tyres. We also visited the circuit in early September, and saw that the asphalt had not changed significantly relative to 2005. Three short portions will have been resurfaced, and that should not have a major impact.

Renault is leading both championships. Can you afford to be cautious?

I don't think so. Of course, we will not go extremely aggressive, as we did with some of our tyres in Magny-Cours for example. But we need to perform well, and we have been talking a lot with Pat Symonds. The tyres will need to be spot on, and if they are not, we will pay a heavy price in lap-time.

It will also be a special weekend for Michelin, as it is the company's last race before leaving F1…

That's true. Psychologically, it will be an important weekend, and a difficult one too. We will certainly be a little more tense, although the result in Suzuka means we are calmer than we would otherwise have been. But anything can still happen, and nothing has been won yet – far from it. We will feel a little sad after the race, but we hope that the result will put a smile on our face. In addition to our usual teams, we will be inviting 30 of our personnel who have made a major contribution to Michelin's success in F1.

Whatever happens in Brazil, it has been a fabulous season, hasn't it?

Yes. We should really pay tribute to our competitors, whose teamwork has pushed us like never before. And Flavio and Pat Symonds have pushed us hard at times too! Winning is one thing. But to win after such a hard battle would be even better. We are determined to finish as champions.