The Michelin company was formed on 28 May 1889 when brothers Edouard and Andre Michelin took over a struggling farm implement business in Clermont-Ferrand and reincorporated it. Michelin's inventions include the removable tyre, the pneumatic tyre for automobiles and trucks, the asymmetric tyre, the run-flat tyre, and the radial tyre — a technology Michelin patented in 1946 and exploited to become one of the world's leading manufacturers. As of 2021, Michelin has been the world's largest tyre manufacturer by annual revenue. The company is also known for its travel guides, roadmaps, and the Michelin stars awarded to restaurants.
From 1972, Michelin was the long-standing tyre supplier for Grand Prix motorcycle racing, equipping the majority of the field through multiple rule eras and class configurations. The company built a near-total grip on the championship, supplying the most competitive factory teams across the 500 cc two-stroke era and into the four-stroke MotoGP format introduced in 2002.
The competitive balance changed in 2007. Casey Stoner, riding a Ducati on Bridgestone tyres, won the MotoGP world championship in dominant fashion. Valentino Rossi and other Michelin-equipped riders complained that Michelins were inferior. In 2008, Michelin made errors in allocating adequate tyres for certain race weekends. Dani Pedrosa's Repsol Honda team switched to Bridgestone mid-season — a move that caused significant friction between Honda Racing Corporation and their Repsol YPF sponsorship. Other riders expressed concerns, and it appeared Michelin might lose its factory riders for 2009.
Dorna and the FIM announced that a control tyre would be imposed on MotoGP from 2009. Michelin did not enter a bid for the control tyre contract, effectively ending its first MotoGP participation at the conclusion of the 2008 season. After Michelin's withdrawal, Bridgestone served as the sole supplier until the end of 2015.
Michelin first competed in the 1977 Formula One season alongside Renault's turbocharged programme and introduced radial tyre technology to the championship. The company won the Formula One Drivers' Championship with Brabham and McLaren before withdrawing at the end of 1984.
Michelin returned to F1 in 2001 and built a strong position, supplying Williams, Jaguar, Benetton (Renault from 2002), McLaren, Toyota, and others. By the 2005 season Michelin tyres were dominant, aided by the regulation requiring tyres to last an entire race weekend. However, the 2005 United States Grand Prix at Indianapolis became a serious reputational blow: Michelin, citing safety concerns about the banked Turn 13 and the new tyres required for it, would not allow the teams it supplied to race. Only the six Bridgestone-shod cars started, and the race proceeded without most of the field. Michelin's share price fell on the day, and the company subsequently offered compensation to ticket holders and 20,000 complimentary tickets for the 2006 race.
Relations between Michelin and the FIA had been difficult since around 2003 and the US Grand Prix episode deepened the antagonism. In December 2005, citing the difficult relationship with the governing body, Michelin announced it would not extend its F1 involvement beyond 2006. The last Formula One race won on Michelin tyres was the 2006 Japanese Grand Prix.
Michelin returned to MotoGP in 2016 as the official exclusive tyre supplier following Bridgestone's withdrawal at the end of 2015. The return marked a significant period of adaptation for teams and riders who had spent seven years developing on Bridgestone compounds. Michelin's return coincided with the MotoGP era of Marc Marquez's sustained Honda dominance as well as the rise of Yamaha, Ducati, and later Aprilia as championship contenders.
Michelin's racing involvement extends far beyond MotoGP and Formula One. In endurance racing, the company supplied tyres for the winner of the inaugural 1923 24 Hours of Le Mans and has remained a major presence at the race for a century. In the World Rally Championship, Michelin supplied Audi, Citroen, Ford, Lancia, Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Toyota, and Volkswagen factory teams at various points. The company was absent from WRC from 2008 to 2010, returned as official supplier from 2011 to 2020, and was replaced by Pirelli from 2021.
Michelin's MotoGP history encompasses more than three decades of participation across the sport's most technically diverse eras. The company's radial tyre technology, first applied to motorcycle Grand Prix racing in the 1970s, transformed the sport's performance benchmarks. The tyre war with Bridgestone in the mid-2000s, and its resolution through a control tyre, shaped the regulatory architecture that MotoGP still uses today.