Bridgestone drivers star in Race of Champions06/12/2005

Felipe Massa and Christijan Albers led the Formula One representatives in the annual Race of Champions last weekend as drivers from three Bridgestone-backed categories competed in the Paris-based event.

Brazilian Massa, who will join Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro next year, and Dutchman Albers, who will compete for MF1 in 2006, both took time out from preparations to head to the Stade de France.

And two other key members of Bridgestone's motorsport world -- ChampCar title-holder Sebastien Bourdais and GP2 runner-up Heikki Kovalainen -- turned up to take on their counterparts from Formula One.

For Massa, who has already begun testing for Ferrari since the end of the season and will continue later this month (December), it proved a break from his normal work with the Scuderia.

"It's definitely nice to escape from the pressures of Formula One," said Massa, who raced for the Sauber team this year before graduating to join seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher at Ferrari.

"You have all the drivers together and you have a good atmosphere so it is good fun to do this. I can relax and just enjoy it. When you are on the track you are enjoying it but you also want to win."

Both Frenchman Bourdais and Finn Kovalainen have impressed in their respective series' by racing and winning on Bridgestone tyres and they were also keen to get involved in the action on the figure of eight track inside the stadium.

Bourdais was on home soil in front of a packed crowd but admitted his surprise to be acknowledged by the crowd after spending his recent years racing in the United States.

"It's good to see that the fans were not completely lost when they announced my name," he joked. "It's the only race I get to do in front of my home crowd so it was good to be able to put on a show.

"It's a great competition, I am grateful for the organisers inviting me for the second time in a row. It was great fun, it's a good reason for me to come back to France and spend some more time with my family.

"We are not categorised as Formula One drivers or Champ Car drivers here -- it is just a bunch of professional drivers going at it, trying to beat each other. But as much fun as you have, we are here to do the job."

The event comprised of a Nations Cup and an individual's competition, in which reigning champion Kovalainen, had the best result of the Bridgestone drivers as he reached the Semi Final.

That competition was ultimately won by reigning World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb, but there was more success in the Nations Cup as Bourdais reached the final with team-mate Stephane Peterhansel.

The French team eventually lost out to Team Scandinavia in a tight contest but thrilled the crowd in the process, making sure the second appearance of the event in the Stade de France was a success.

Nelson Piquet Jr, who competed in the Bridgestone-supported GP2 series this season, joined Massa in the Brazilian team, who said: "We didn't make it all the way and I struggled at the worst moment, which is why we didn't win."

But Kovalainen, who claimed that winning last year's event helped boost his profile, all a great experience to meet some of the stars from Bridgestones' other series'.

"Many people took notice of me last year and I think it helped me for the future," said Kovalainen. "This time it was a bit disappointing because I had a problem engaging 2nd gear and so that obviously wasn't good for the race."

(c) Collings, 06 12 05