Michelin looks set to secure an exclusive, three-year contract to supply Formula One with tyres after a report in Auto Motor und Sport says the French manufacturer has agreed to drop the supply price from £2.5 million (€3m, $3.8m) to £1.27m (€1.5m, $1.9m).
With Japanese supplier, Bridgestone leaving the sport after the current season, F1 has been on the lookout for a new supplier. Three offers have so far been made by: Michelin, Cooper Avon and Pirelli.
It’s thought Michelin are the favourites to secure the contract, as they have had previous experience of working with F1.
The report says Michelin has agreed to back-down on a number of demands which included: significant advertising space on every car and drivers overalls, as well as track-side banners to the value of £12m (€15m, $19m).
They have reportedly agreed to small shoulder adverts on driver overalls, the Michelin logo on the nose-cone and Michelin lettering on the rear-wing.
They also requested a switch from the current 13-inch rims to a much larger sized 18-inches. This change will now not come into affect until 2013 when a new engine and the return of KERS are introduced.
Other possible ideas include the scrapping of the current regulation which demands teams to use both tyre compounds in a race. Instead Michelin will supply three compounds; hard, medium and soft, and the teams can choose their own mix for the race.
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