No bridge issues leaves Bridgestone pleased

(GMM) Bridgestone on Friday said it was "pleased" to see the opening three hours of practice at Valencia conclude with no tire problems.

It is known that, before the engines started, the sport's official tire supplier expressed concern to the governing FIA about the unique swing bridge section.

Bridgestone reportedly asked Charlie Whiting, for fear of punctures, to look into possible measures to remedy the small height gap between the bridge sections.

But when Friday's action showed up no significant problems, Bridgestone's F1 boss Hiroshi Yasukawa said the concerns had simply been in the name of maximizing safety.

The Japanese said Bridgestone technicians inspected the Valencia layout on no fewer than three occasions before this weekend.

Yasukawa explained that having dialogue with the FIA is "standard procedure".

"We are pleased to see that the drivers all managed to gain a significant amount of track time without any particular problems for the tires," he added.