Dunlop stole the show at the recent Historic Motorsport Awards beating six other nominees to win the coveted prize of Motorsport Company of the Year along with their major tyre distributor – HP Tyres. The 2004 Historic Motorsport Awards held at The Chesford Grange Hotel in Kenilworth was attended by champions and guests of honour including Mike Costin and Keith Duckworth who developed the Cosworth engine, as well as former rally champion Hannu Mikkola.
Dunlop joined the motorsport arena in the 1920s, when tyres were developed for cars capable of speeds over 200 mph. This heralded their longstanding relationship with motorsport achieving many high-speed successes over the years including Sir Malcolm Campbell’s 1935 land-speed record in ‘Bluebird.’ During the 1950s – the golden age of motorsport – Dunlop tyres achieved an unrivalled sixty-six Formula One wins with eight world champions. Dunlop’s success at the Historic Motorsport Awards followed the second International Historic Motorsport Show held at Stoneleigh Park in Coventry. Here, all sectors of historic motorsport came together under one roof to do business and discuss their plans with competitors, enthusiasts and the media. Jean Felix Bazelin, General Manager of Dunlop Motorsport Europe who accepted the award said: ‘It was a great honour to receive this award amongst such distinguished guests. It shows that as well as having great heritage in motorsport, Dunlop’s proud tradition remains. On top of being at the forefront of modern international motorsport in Touring cars, DTM, FIA GT and MotoGP we are also committed to winning in the historic sector too.’
He continues: ‘ We are delighted to share this award with HP Tyres who have been a fundamental part of our motorsport tyre business for many years.’ ENDS: About Dunlop Dunlop is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of high performance tyres with an impressive track record of motorsport successes. Dunlop’s extensive racing experience has led to innovative technologies for tyres designed for everyday motoring. Always looking for maximizing driving pleasure, Dunlop offers all types of motorists the performance and durability of the latest technologies, including runflat tyres, using DSST technology, which is fitted to award winning vehicles such as the new BMW Five Series. Many of the world's leading vehicle manufacturers fit Dunlop tyres as standard, including Audi, BMW, Citroen, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Opel/Vauxhall, Peugeot, Porsche, Renault, Rover, Seat, Skoda, Toyota and Volkswagen.
