The experts say tyres contribute to 25 percent of a Formula One car's performance. After witnessing the way the Bridgestone-shod Ferraris have dominated the 2002 season, many believe the Japanese manufacturer played an even bigger role in their success, and judging by the statistics it's hard not to agree. Karl Ludvigsen pays tribute to Bridgestone after an almost flawless season

"I'd say it works out at a quarter tyres, a quarter chassis, a quarter engine and a quarter driver. Fairly equal and, to win, you need to maximise each of these areas." That's the view of Hirohide Hamashima, Bridgestone's general manager of motorsport, and I can't say I disagree. Some might even say that tyres contribute more than 25 percent to a Grand Prix car's performance. But consider how much attention we as observers and fans give to these four elements. Drivers are constantly in the news, as are engines and chassis. They have websites and make headlines. But tyres? They're the boring bit; they just hold up the car. But Japan put tyres in the limelight.

We need to take a moment to reflect on what Bridgestone has achieved. It took part in its 100th consecutive Formula One race in Suzuka - good reason for celebration in itself. But to have won 70 of these hundred races, as they did in Japan - that's sensational. Batting 0.700 over six seasons in Formula One is unheard of. Of course it helped that they were sole suppliers in 1999 and 2000, but that wasn't their fault (unless you reckon that they were to blame for blowing out Goodyear in 1998).

In Japan, Bridgestone's president and CEO, Shigeo Watanabe, took the bows for his company. "I must say 'thank you' to Michael and Ferrari for achieving this for us," he stated. "The challenge of Formula One is our passion and we look forward to celebrating more success in the future." But Watanabe's predecessor in the job, Yoichiro Kaizaki, was the man who pushed the button that rocketed Bridgestone into Formula One.

In the mid-1990s the company's Firestone racing tyres were increasingly competitive in America, culminating in a CART championship for Jimmy Vasser in 1996. Seeing how much this improved Firestone's image at a difficult time for the brand, and keen to do likewise in Europe for Bridgestone, Kaizaki green-lighted a Formula One feasibility study in the summer of 1995.

This wasn't an entirely new venue for the Japanese firm. Bias-ply Bridgestones were worn by the Kojima-Fords that raced in the 1976 and '77 Japanese Grands Prix at Fuji, one of them setting the fastest lap in the wet 1976 race. When F1 racing returned to Japan at Suzuka in 1987 Bridgestone's engineers were trackside, measuring the performance of the Pirelli and Goodyear tyres and observing the procedures of these established suppliers. Then in 1989 Hirotoshi Honda asked Bridgestone to supply rubber for the F3000 Reynard that his Mugen firm had bought to evaluate its Formula One V-8. Starting with its best Group C tyres, Bridgestone developed its first radial-ply F1 racing tyres. It learned a lot from tests with the Reynard and Mugen's later Formula One Tyrrell.

Competing against arch-rival Dunlop, Bridgestone tyres took Kazuyoshi Hoshino to third in the 1989 Japanese F3000 series. This result prompted the company's Motorsport tyre R&D section at its Kodaira Technical Center to carry out a drastic re-examination of the company's development of formula-car tyres from F3000 through to F1. What constitutes "grip" on formula racing tyres? What traction levels prevail? These and other questions were posed in a project run from 1990 through '91. Using research data from previous tests and computer simulation techniques, Bridgestone embarked on the development of a new tyre for formula cars. This project was transferred from the Motorsport tyre R&D section to Bridgestone's main tyre-research division at Kodaira.

Triggered by this work, the testing of prototype tyres on Formula One chassis extended into 1994. More than 12,000 miles of tests were conducted with Christian Danner, Johnny Herbert, Mauro Martini, Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Aguri Suzuki. Kodaira's conclusion at the end of '94 was that Bridgestone could enter Formula One, but that a two-year transition period would be needed to phase itself into this demanding form of racing.

Against this background, President Yoichiro Kaizaki gave the green light to the F1 commitment. Having devised a plan of attack, Bridgestone formally announced in February 1996 that it would enter Formula One in 1998. Its plan of action was as follows: "For the first one or two years, accumulate new data on tyre technology while adjusting to the high competition level of the world's greatest motorsport. In their third year in F1, Bridgestone-supplied teams would be expected to be appearing on the podium. By the fifth year, according to the plan, the company would capture a world title." As we've seen, it didn't happen quite like that.

Working toward its goal of a first campaign in 1998, Bridgestone formed testing links with Arrows and Ligier. It produced four different carcass designs and five compounds for testing over three months in the summer of 1996. In all some 5,000 miles were covered at Silverstone, Magny-Cours, Barcelona, Imola, Monza, Estoril, Nurburgring and Suzuka by drivers Aguri Suzuki, David Brabham, Jos Verstappen, Damon Hill and Ricardo Rosset. The feedback they gave was excellent. All the drivers liked the tyres a lot, as did the teams. The result was most uncharacteristic for a traditionally conservative Japanese company: Bridgestone brought forward its Formula One entry by a full season.

1997 saw Bridgestones being raced by Prost, Arrows, Stewart and Minardi. The year got off to a surprisingly good start with a points finish for fifth-place Olivier Panis's Prost at Albert Park, followed by a third place in Brazil for the same combination. This was achieved with tyre-related strategy - Panis pitting only once on the more durable Bridgestones while the Goodyear wearers had to stop twice. Then at Monaco its wets worked a treat for Rubens Barrichello's second-placed Stewart. In Hungary a Bridgestone-shod car led a race for the first time: Damon Hill's ill-fated Arrows.

Bridgestone hit the big time in 1998 with its signing of Benetton and fast-rising McLaren. The tip to the latter team came from partner Mercedes-Benz, which had been enjoying success in other series with Bridgestone rubber. Working with Woking meant raising their game, the Japanese found: "McLaren's test team, with its own separate personnel, operated on a level that was different from that of the teams which Bridgestone had supported in 1997. Until forming its affiliation with McLaren and Mercedes-Benz, Bridgestone had carried out development projects more or less at its own pace. McLaren's engineers, however, incessantly demanded nothing but everyone's best efforts in fine-tuning the cars' performance."

The 1998 season brought a further challenge in the introduction of grooved tyres. Bridgestone took the lead in devising wider front tyres to reduce the severe understeer that the grooves provoked. It recommended them over the strenuous objections of Adrian Newey, who disliked their greater disturbance of downforce-generating airflow. When 1998 began with McLaren's stunning domination of the Australian Grand Prix, however, Newey admitted that Bridgestone was on to something. Together with Mika Hakkinen they raced through to the 1998 titles. Since then no other tyre has carried the Championship winner in either category.

Much has been made this year of the Bridgestone-Ferrari connection and its contribution to the red cars' success. It's interesting how this came about. Peter Windsor wrote that Ferrari shrewdly overcame the exclusivity that Williams enjoyed with Michelin in 2001: "What to do about that exclusivity? Switch to Michelins or oblige McLaren to do so? The downside to switching was leaving McLaren free on Bridgestones. The more difficult option was the double-whammy. If McLaren switched, Ferrari would have exclusive possession of Bridgestone. McLaren and Williams, moreover, would share. So Ferrari deepened their Bridgestone connection and obliged McLaren to switch."

One way Ferrari deepened the relationship was by dedicating one of its test teams specifically to tyre development. Often the tyre people have to share the work that a test team is doing on many other car parameters. "Until this year we used to develop our tyres entirely by ourselves," said Hirohide Hamashima, "but Ferrari have helped us a lot this year, which has made us stronger. We have a test team who move around various circuits with Ferrari, including Mugello and Paul Ricard. We get more information from Ferrari than we do from other teams, so the tyres tend to suit their car better.

"We're proud of our association with all our teams," Hamashima added loyally, and this pride was especially evident after the Japanese race. "As a Japanese person I am very pleased for Takuma [Sato] on his strong result," said Hisao Suganuma, Bridgestone Motorsport's technical manager, "but also, from Bridgestone's point of view, that we were able to help him and his team move up the constructors' table." Bridgestone had a home advantage at Suzuka in logistical terms, the only race on the calendar where it does. Otherwise its Formula One engineers visit the Honda-owned track only once a year.

With its 2002 performance, Bridgestone has proven that it relishes competition. Two seasons as sole supplier didn't blunt the challenge it was able to offer to returnee Michelin. Both have elevated the technology of the Formula One tyre to a new high level in spite of FIA President Max Mosley's grooves. Its close alliance with Ferrari raised the value of its one-quarter contribution to the overall performance of the red machines. Bridgestone worked hard to gain the success that it richly deserves.