Bridgestone Celebrates MotoGP Podium Finish Bridgestone, in only it's second year of participation in the world's most premier motorcycle championship series, MotoGP, is celebrating the dramatic 3rd place finish of Pramac Honda Team rider, Makoto Tamada in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil last Saturday. Tamada's performance was brilliant as he moved through an impressive field of contenders in the 24-lap race under searing hot temperatures. Bridgestone tires, known for their supreme grip in hot temperatures, held up masterfully allowing Tamada to finish third and ending the race with the second fastest lap time. Tamada says, "I had a good start for a change and I decided to push as hard as possible on the first few laps when the tires were still fresh and offered lots of grip ... Both my bike and my Bridgestone tires worked perfectly today." Hiroshi Yamada, Bridgestone's Racing Manager, commented, "We were confident of a good result after Makoto's third place finish in warm-up practice. Makoto pushed very hard from the start ... and was able to maintain strong, and consistent lap times until the checkered flag. Our tires worked great from the start. The track is very hard on tire durability, so we worked with a hard front tire compound. On the rear, our data suggested that we should switch from a medium hard compound to one that was even harder – a perfect choice for the race." Tamada was impressive from the start as he charged past Troy Bayliss on the fourth lap to take sixth position. Two laps later he swept past Nicky Hayden then battled Loris Capirossi on lap eight for the fourth position. At lap 12 he eased past Max Biaggi, maintaining this third position for the remainder of the race. Bridgestone Motorcycle Program Manager for North America, Bob Graham, says, "We're delighted that after only a short time in Moto GP, Bridgestone technology has clearly demonstrated that we will be a force to be reckoned with in the most demanding of all series. We congratulate Makoto Tamada on his third place finish and trust that this will be the first of many trips to the podium in his career." For more information on Bridgestone's full selection of high performance race tires, call Bob Graham, Manager of Bridgestone Motorcycle and Karting Programs at (615) 937-3442. Bridgestone/Firestone N.A. Tire LLC is located at 535 Marriott Drive, Nashville, TN 37214. |