The Bridgestone-supported GP2 Series heads to rural France for its fourth round where Bridgestone's medium compound GP2 Series slick Potenza tyre will be used on the smooth surfaces of Magny Cours as part of the French Grand Prix.

The Circuit de Nevers Magny Cours presents an interesting challenge to the aspiring Grand Prix stars of tomorrow. Drivers will find a 4.41km track featuring 16 turns of varying complexity and makeup, and getting a good set-up here is very difficult.

In addition to the challenge of the circuit itself, this will be the first time this season that the medium compound Bridgestone Potenza will be used. The hard compound was used in the opening two rounds of the year, Spain and Turkey, and the super soft was used in the last round in Monaco. Mastering the medium will be crucial, as not only is it used in Magny Cours, but it us also used for the remaining six rounds of the Series.

Compromise is the name of the game in Magny Cours, and there is an additional challenge to the layout of the circuit, and that's the climate. The track is surrounded by fields and herds of cattle, which provide a contrast from the last round which took place in Monaco. Wind across these fields can make aero balance critical. The sunlight that beams down on the track can make quite a difference too, as the dark tarmac fluctuates in temperature more than other venues. All in all, it's a difficult place to find the set-up sweet spot.

In 2007, Italian Giorgio Pantano (Campos Grand Prix) and Spaniard Javier Villa (Racing Engineering) won a race apiece here and both return to try to repeat their success in 2008.

Heading to Magny Cours, Bruno Senna (iSport) leads the drivers' championship, although Giorgio Pantano (Racing Engineering) has the same number of points, 24, in second position. Romain Grosjean (ART) is in third place on 19 points, the same tally as fourth position Alvaro Parente (Super Nova). The teams' championship is led by iSport with 35 points, from Racing Engineering on 27. Piquet Sports are in third position with 25 points.

Hirohide Hamashima - Director of Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development: "Magny Cours is a circuit which calls on many different characteristics of our medium compound Potenza slick GP2 tyre. The first sector is quite high speed and drivers require stability from their tyres. The second sector is very interesting with hard braking and good traction required at the end of the long straight, and this corner is also good for overtaking. If the drivers use the tyres well at both turns five and eight they can gain a lot in lap time. At the end of the lap we see a lot of kerb used before drivers take to the start-finish straight."