Bell: Michelin better than Bridgestone.

Renault chassis technical director, Bob Bell has predicted that the balance of power will swing back to Michelin this weekend and in the next few races, after Bridgestone and Ferrari took the laurels at Imola two weeks ago.

Speaking prior to European Grand Prix, which will take place at the Nurburgring in Germany, Bell added that while he wasn't discounting Michael Schumacher and Ferrari, he expects the likes of McLaren-Mercedes and Honda to push them more this Sunday, as they look to continue their storming start to the season.

"Overall, I think the advantage will remain with Michelin this year," said Bell. "Ferrari are clearly very quick, and you can never write off Michael or the team. They will be pushing us all year long. But from the next races, I expect the balance to swing back in Michelin's favour.

"I suspect the events in Germany and in Spain will be Michelin races, and that our main competition will come from the Michelin teams, which means McLaren and Honda. We are not writing off Ferrari, of course, but we have tested strongly in Barcelona, and our car was very quick at the Nurburgring last year."

As for their plan for the weekend Renault have no intention of sitting back and being conservative: "We are doing the normal things, and putting new parts on the car at every race. The work at the factory is diligent, the level of performance is increasing every weekend. The lap-times show that, but equally, we are not taking any advantage for granted," continued Bell.

"We have to go out there and be aggressive. The car is strong and both drivers will be using the uprated B-spec engine. There is no change in our approach: we will be racing to win."