MEDIA INFORMATION December, 2014

Bathurst 12 Hour preparation begins for MICHELIN

After dominating the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour last year, Michelin are once again proving to be the tyre of choice for 2015 amongst the front running teams. With the majority of the Michelin tyre orders already locked in, and tyres already on their way from France, work is well underway for the 2015 event.

New Partners:

The Bathurst 12 Hour is rapidly becoming one of the preeminent endurance races around the world. With this comes increasing interest from international teams with strong factory team links, and Michelin is proud to be supporting them in 2015.

New Michelin partners for the 2015 race include Team M-Sport, Craft-Bamboo Racing, and Motionsport. They will join our long time partners including Phoenix Racing, NISMO, Clearwater Racing, and AF Corse. Many of these teams have experience with other tyre brands, but for the Bathurst 12 Hour they have chosen Michelin tyres.

One such new entry is the two-car entry from Craft-Bamboo Racing. This is a team that knows Michelin well having raced with them throughout 2014 in both the World Endurance Championship and in the Asian Le Mans Series. In a successful debut season, the team scored their first WEC podium finish at the six hours of Fiji, and won their Class in the Asian Le Mans Series.

With a close technical and sporting partnership with Aston Martin Racing, the team is expected to be one to watch, and Michelin is proud to be their tyre manufacturer of choice for the Bathurst 12 Hour.

Bentley Team M-Sport are not only a new entry to the Bathurst 12 Hour, but they are bringing with them two Bentley Continental GT3s – the first time these cars have competed at Bathurst. Michelin has been working closely with the team to ensure they have the right tyres for the race, and are looking forward to seeing them on the famous Bathurst track for the first time.

New Tyres:

The performance of the Michelin tyres at the Bathurst 12 Hour both in terms of outright speed, and their ability to double, and even triple stint on occasions, has been reflected in the success of their partners.

For the 2015 race, Michelin will bring a new tyre that offers even better performance than the tyres used at the event previously. The new Michelin ‘L’ tyre, that has run in Europe this year, offers greater tyre life, higher performance sustainability, and improved warm up. These characteristics combine to deliver better driving comfort, and ultimately a quicker lap time.

Technically speaking, the new Michelin ‘L’ range has been designed to feature a softer carcass, reinforced crown stiffness, along with a new compound.

Through a gradual and limited degradation, the new tyre allows drivers to more easily control the behaviour of their car. Testing has demonstrated that the Michelin Pilot Sport S9L allows for a durability gain of up to 20% compared with the previous generation tyre, while maintaining the same timekeeping performance.

The dominant results for Michelin globally in 2014 perfectly demonstrates what is at the heart of the Groups DNA – delivering tyres the offer MICHELIN Total Performance. Whether it is at the ultimate endurance

MEDIA INFORMATION December, 2014 race, the Le Mans 24 Hour, or at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour, it is the teams that are able to run longer, without sacrificing speed or safety that finish ahead of the pack.

Media Contact: Jane Rowe – Michelin Press Manager 0407 544 874

For more information about Michelin please visit www.michelin.com.au

For more information about the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour please visit www.bathurst12hour.com.au

What is MICHELIN Total Performance?

With a racing pedigree built on championship and race wins across the globe, the Michelin name is synonymous with delivering quality products that perform well, are safe and reliable, and are durable.

These critical elements of performance are not only specific to racing, but are also key priorities for all drivers. For this reason, after being tested in the extreme conditions of a race track, innovations that help our race partners are then transferred into Michelin passenger car tyres.

The philosophy of “MICHELIN Total Performance” reconciles qualities that some believe to be conflicting by virtue of technology. It is a principle that is at the heart of Michelin's research and development strategy globally.