BFGoodrich Tyres for World Rally Championship 2007

Kuala Lumpur, 20 July 2006 – BFGoodrich, a tyre brand of the Michelin Group, will be partnering certain teams competing in the 2006 World Rally Championship. This decision represents a long term commitment aimed at reinforcing its brand awareness, especially in Europe.

Coincidentally, BFGoodrich’s rival Pirelli has announced its withdrawal from the World Rally Championship at the end of 2006, but BFGoodrich says that this will not affect its commitment, and confirms that the BFGoodrich brand will be present in the WRC in 2007.

BFGoodrich has a history which dates back more than 100 years, and marks the early days of the automobile in the United States. The company a long list of successes in all disciplines of motor sport; today, BFGoodrich enjoys a worldwide reputation with an annual production of 23 million tyres.

Said Aimé Chatard, Rallies Programme Manager, BFGoodrich, “I am sorry to see Pirelli withdraw from the WRC after such a long presence in rallying. BFGoodrich will nonetheless do everything in its power to produce tyres of equal quality and
performance potential for all the manufacturers that compete in the 2007 World Rally
Championship. At the same time, BFGoodrich will make its technical expertise available to the tyre working group set up by the FIA with a view to determining tyre regulations adapted to the demands of rallying in the future.”