20/06/2005
NEWS STORY
Michelin has revealed that it feels no regret regarding events at Indianapolis at the weekend, and despite the threat of action by the FIA, has no intention of walking away from F1.
"I really don't believe this will have an effect on Michelin's future in Formula One," the French manufacturer's deputy director of competition, Frederic Henry-Biabaud, told Reuters.
"We are convinced our decision was a professional and a responsible one in line with our policy of 100 percent safety," he added.
"We deeply regret what happened and we feel particularly sorry for the fans. We regret the consequences of this but we certainly do not regret our decision."
The exact cause of the problem with the original tyres - which caused Ralf Schumacher and Ricardo Zonta to crash on Friday - is still unclear, but Henry-Biabaud insists that his company continues to investigate.
"The investigations are not over yet," he said. "We are aware that there is a problem but we have not yet precisely identified it."
There is still anger that the race didn't go ahead as normal, with many of the teams claiming that it was the FIA's and Ferrari's refusal to allow a chicane to be built at Turn 13, that caused the farce, witnesses by millions of F1 fans around the world.
"We believe that it was realistic and feasible, said Henry-Biabaud, "but, for their own reasons, the sport's officials ruled it out.
"It is too early to say what consequences this will have but our partners were very supportive and we are confident our decision will have been understood, especially in the United States, where safety is of paramount importance," he added.