BA notoriously tough Malaysian Grand Prix took its toll on the Bridgestone runners today in sweltering conditions but Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and Michael Schumacher and Toyota’s Ralf Schumacher battled through to take valuable points.

For the Williams team in particular it was a day of unfulfilled promise as engine and hydraulic problems put an end to their race. Mark Webber and Nico Rosberg had started from the second row of the grid and were running a strong race up with the front runners until their early demise potentially robbed them of podium places. In fact, engine problems seemed to compromise the progress of several Bridgestone runners this weekend. Both Ferrari drivers and Toyota’s Ralf Schumacher had been penalized ten places on the grid following engine changes earlier in the weekend. Massa started from 21st and Michael Schumacher from 14th on the grid while his brother Ralf started from the very back, making their points scoring finishing positions significant achievements. The Bridgestone teams now head for Melbourne where the Australian Grand Prix will be held in two weeks time.

Hisao Suganuma, Technical Manager of Bridgestone Motorsport, said: “It was a shame not to make the podium today but both Ferrari drivers and Toyota’s Ralf Schumacher scored points. We could see from Ralf’s pace during the race that Toyota is steadily improving as they become more familiar with the Bridgestone tyres and I believe they will show their true performance as the season progresses. It was not a good day for the Williams drivers who stopped due to engine and hydraulic problems respectively but I am sure that if they had continued the race we would have seen the strength of the Williams package. Felipe Massa did a good job to finish fifth with a one-stop strategy.

It was good to see how adaptable the Bridgestone tyres were this weekend, being able to support one, two and three-stop strategies, which is not easy in these hot conditions. Michael had a longer first stint than Felipe and although he pushed very hard to gain positions in that first stint he couldn’t keep up the momentum. He did finish sixth however. From our point of view it is clear we had the right tyres for this weekend and once things start to come together for our teams in all areas of their packages we look forward to seeing their competitiveness increase. It was also good to see the two Midland drivers and Takuma Sato in the Super Aguri bring their cars home. This provided them with valuable track time and good car and tyre data, all of which will help improve their overall packages.”

Bridgestone Team News:

Ross Brawn, Technical Director – Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro:
“Considering our starting positions today it was a reasonable result. We’re generally happy. The Bridgestone tyres were consistent. We certainly chose the right compound – which we saw in the first stint. Michael, however, did not seem to have the same pace in the second stint and we shall need to understand why that was the case.”

Mike Gascoyne, Technical Director, Chassis – Panasonic Toyota Racing:
“Clearly we managed to get the Bridgestone tyres working better this weekend. Qualifying was disappointing and we could have achieved a better grid position. We are very pleased with the race pace and Ralf was able to push when we switched to a three-stop strategy. To score points from the back of the grid is encouraging. We had no issues with the tyres and we are happy with the level of performance.