The GP2 Series heads to Magny Cours this weekend for its fourth round, the French Grand Prix .

Bridgestone's medium-compound slick Potenza tyre will be used for the first time this season in rural France.

The circuit presents an interesting challenge to the aspiring grand prix stars of tomorrow.

Drivers will find a 4.41km track featuring 16 turns of varying complexity and makeup, making it very difficult to achieve a desirable set-up. It will also be the first time this season that the Potenza tyre will be used.

The hard compound was used in the opening two rounds of the year, in Spain and Turkey, and the super soft in the last round in Monaco. Mastering the medium will be crucial as it will also be used for the remaining six rounds of the series.

The track is surrounded by fields and herds of cattle, which provide a stark contrast from the last round, which took place in Monaco. Wind across these fields increases the importance of aero balance, while the sunlight that beams down on to the track can also make quite a difference as the dark tarmac therefore fluctuates in temperature more than at other venues.

In 2007 Italian Giorgio Pantano of Campos Grand Prix and Spaniard Javier Villa of Racing Engineering won a race apiece at the track. Both will look to repeat their success in 2008.

Bruno Senna of iSport currently leads the drivers' championship, although Pantano has the same number of points, 24, in second position.

Romain Grosjean of ART is in third place on 19 points, the same tally as Super Nova's Alvaro Parente in fourth.

The teams' championship is led by iSport with 35 points from Racing Engineering on 27. Piquet Sports are in third position with 25 points.

Hirohide Hamashima, director of Bridgestone Motorsport tyre development, previews the track: "Magny Cours is a circuit which calls on many different characteristics of our medium-compound Potenza slick GP2 tyre.

"The first sector is quite high speed and drivers require stability from their tyres. The second sector is very interesting with hard braking and good traction required at the end of the long straight, and this corner is also good for overtaking.

"If the drivers use the tyres well at both turns five and eight they can gain a lot in lap time. At the end of the lap we see a lot of kerb used before drivers take to the start-finish straight."

From Official Website