2008 was to be the last year for grooved tyres. Tyre construction remained basically unchanged from the previous season. Hamashima remembers: "From a technical standpoint, the highlight of the year was the Turkish GP." The most famous section of the Istanbul Park circuit is Turn 8, and this is where Lewis Hamilton delaminated a tyre on his McLaren the previous year. On this long fast bend, cars are cornering to the left at full throttle for about six seconds, and Hamilton's front right tyre had complained all the way through. Bridgestone's verdict was that the cause was how the tyre was handled. Data was gathered and analysed from every angle to develop tyres that would have absolutely no durability problems. But the engineers who had poured all their technical expertise into this issue were nonetheless on tenterhooks as the race progressed. "We had done our absolute best, and we had confidence in our work, but it is in the nature of our engineers to worry. Sometimes, simulations are not always totally perfect and can underestimate the forces at work. Our engineers remained constantly on alert during that race, checking the telemetry data and watchful for any signs of trouble because you just never know what might happen."