Bridgestone Baffled By Hockenheim Failures.

Bridgestone engineers have admitted that they cannot establish reasons for the tyre failures which afflicted the McLaren team at Hockenheim two weeks ago.


Hakkinen suffered a deflation at 210kph approaching the Stadium section of the German circuit, spinning four times before hitting the barriers. Team-mate David Coulthard suffered a similar problem during qualifying on Saturday, but managed to return his car to the pits.


The original theory that a rear wing support had cut through the tyre has already been ruled out, but Bridgestone remains baffled as to the actual cause, claiming that there is insufficient evidence to complete the investigation.


The Japanese company refuses to rule out a cut in the tyre caused by an outside agent, but also suggests that the high temperatures at Hockenheim, incorrect tyre pressures or an unexpected blister may have been to blame.