MICHELIN SCORES MEMORABLE ONE-TWO ON HOME GROUND

World championship leader Fernando Alonso (Renault) gave Michelin its ninth victory of the season with a dominant drive in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours.

The Spaniard qualified on pole position and pulled away from his rivals at more than a second per lap during the early stages. He was never seriously challenged thereafter and went on to finish 11.805 seconds clear , and closest title rival Kimi Räikkönen (Team McLaren Mercedes/Michelin).

It was Michelin’s 84th F1 world championship victory, Alonso’s fifth of the season – and the first time an all-Renault car has won in France since 1983. “I am very proud to win here today, for the team, for Renault, for Michelin who have had a difficult time in the last two weeks, and for all the fans who came to support us.” said Fernando.

Renault now leads McLaren by 18 points, with a total of 89 points. “The team gave a fantastic performance today, and Michelin did the same – after the events in Indianapolis, it was great to see them come back so strongly and dominate the week-end.” added Flavio Briatore - Managing Director- “Finally we are delighted for the spectators, and our colleagues who came to the race today – we were proud to offer them this victory.” Räikkönen’s drive was every bit as impressive as Alonso’s.

The Finn set the third fastest qualifying time – despite having enough fuel on board for 28 laps, considerably more than his rivals – although he had to start 13th after being penalised 10 places for an unscheduled engine change.

He made two refuelling stops, one fewer than Alonso, and had established himself in second place after the first of them. His team-mate Juan Pablo Montoya was on course to complete a Michelin 1-2-3, but a hydraulic problem forced him to retire without any gears.

Defending world champion Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) inherited third place, ahead of Michelin drivers Jenson Button (B·A·R-Honda, fourth), Jarno Trulli (Toyota, fifth), Giancarlo Fisichella (Renault, sixth), Ralf Schumacher (Toyota, seventh) and Jacques Villeneuve (Sauber-Petronas, eighth). Trulli started from the front row and ran second in the early stages, before losing a little ground during each of his two refuelling stops.

Fisichella was on course for fourth place until he stalled during his final stop, an incident that allowed Button to sweep through to score his best result of the campaign. Of the remaining Michelin finishers, David Coulthard (Red Bull Racing) took 10th, ahead of Takuma Sato (B·A·R-Honda, 11th), Mark Webber (BMW WilliamsF1 Team, 12th) and Nick Heidfeld (BMW WilliamsF1 Team, 14th).