The director of Bridgestone Motorsport, Hiroshi Yasukawa, urges Goodyear to make a decision on whether they will remain with Formula One next season, or retire from the sport, as previously announced.

"The time has come," said Yasukawa today, "For those involved in the business of supplying tyres to F1 racing to announce their plans for the 1999 season. Due to procrastination by our rival Goodyear, we at Bridgestone are not yet in a position to make important decisions regarding next year. At the end of November last year, Goodyear announced its intention to withdraw from F1 as a tyre supplier in 1999. Our understanding then was that we would be required to support all of the teams that intended to race in 1999. It was a precondition which we were ready and willing to observe. Since that moment, Goodyear's intentions have become increasingly obscure.

"Formal confirmation of its withdrawal was due to have been made at the end of April, then at the end of June. Most recently, we have heard suggestions that Goodyear will stay, provided that one or two of the strongest teams agree to race on their tyres. Now, in mid-August, the time has come for a final decision to be made and communicated to us. Without that decision, we are unable to go ahead with the program on which the quality of next year's racing depends."

Yesterday though, in the FIA Friday press conference, Goodyear's Formula One operations manager, Perry Bell, clearly stated that his company has not changed its intentions to leave Formula One at the end of 1998. "The situation as far as I know is the same as it was in November, when we issued a press release that stated we would be leaving F1 at the end of the 1998 season. I don't know why there should be any question about that decision. Goodyear's position has been to push hard in Formula One in 1998, and to go out a winner. That has been our objective all along", said Bell.