Bridgestone vow to improve for Ferrari's home race

Bridgestone have vowed to pull out all the stops to help Ferrari bounce back on home territory at Imola this weekend.

Bridgestone have vowed to pull out all the stops to help Ferrari bounce back on home territory at Imola this weekend.

The Japanese company's tyres suffered in the Bahrain heat three weeks ago and contributed to a disappointing debut for Ferrari's new car. But with five consecutive drivers' and constructors' titles with Ferrari under their belt, Bridgestone are determined to rediscover successafter extensive testing.

Hiroshi Yasukawa, Bridgestone's director of motorsport, said: "The first three rounds of this season have produced some interesting results. While they may have been great for the spectators, they were not what we had hoped for.

"We do believe that the Ferrari-Bridgestone package is growing stronger each day. Our personnel have been working hard and we fully expect to see a competitive performance from them this weekend. For Ferrari and Minardi a good result is important on their home territory."

Renault hope to boost Giancarlo Fisichella in front of his home fans. Fisichella could get first use of a lighter and more powerful "B specification" engine that the championship-leading team had not planned to introduce until the fifth round in Spain next month.