Last week in Buenos Aires, the Gran Premio de la República Argentina was officially presented with the event will be hosted at Termas de Río Hondo circuit in the province of Santiago del Estero in 2013.

One of the guests at the presentation was Yamaha Tech3 rider Andrea Dovizioso (he’s currently a topic of discussion regarding certain statements he made on Valentino Rossi regarding the fact that the former World Champion will not be competitive enough on the Ducati in 2012 to fight for the world title and that with the today’s rivals even if he was on a Japanese motorcycle he wouldn’t be able to dominate which launched a piqued response from Rossi) he was interviewed by Argentinian Corsa TV and talked about the new circuit that will be on the MotoGP calendar for three years and his new ride, the Yamaha M1.

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Colin Edwards won’t be at Valencia for the final MotoGP race of the season and his last race with Yamaha Tech3 as he underwent successful surgery yesterday to fix the multiple fractures he sustained in the Sepang crash in which Marco Simoncelli lost his life.

In an interview with Italy’s Gazzetta dello Sport, the highly popular American rider talked about how sorry that he can’t be at Valencia (Josh Hayes will be taking his place ) and how being involved in Marco Simoncelli’s death affected him.

“The last few days have been tough, especially the first 24 hours after the accident when I asked myself a thousand questions: could have done something different? Back home I saw the video of the incident and I quickly found the answer: No, I couldn’t have done absolutely anything to avoid Marco and like me neither could have Valentino. It’s hard losing a friend, but I think I’d feel the same pain even if I had not been directly involved in the accident.” said Edwards.

Yet the Texas Tornado briefly thought about quitting, “I thought about it for a day, until I saw the images, and that was the end of it. We’ve lost a bright star, Marco was loved by fans for his personality, his character, his charisma. People love to watch our races, but it’s not only for that, but it’s also what we can transmit and Marco was a personality and there aren’t many in MotoGP and I’m sure some will disagree with this. I really liked the way he related to the fans. “

Edwards will be riding a CRT machine for NGM Forward Racing in 2012.

Source | lastampa.it

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Colin Edwards will have to miss the MotoGP season finale at Valencia and his last race with Yamaha Tech3 following the injuries he sustained during that fatal lap 2 at Sepang that claimed the life of Marco Simoncelli last weekend.

The YamahTech3 rider will have to undergo surgery on a left arm injury due to numerous small fractures at the top of his humerous bone that also has cartilage damage around the tip of the same bone and has severe swelling to both wrists and right heel, but fortunately for the Texan there are no fractures.

“Firstly, I want to thank everybody for all their messages of support since Sunday. The support and love has been overwhelming and it has been a great comfort to me at this difficult time. My heart goes out to the family and friends of Marco and I will miss him a lot, as will the entire MotoGP family. I watched Marco’s funeral yesterday and I really wish I could have been there. I wanted to go but unfortunately my injuries meant I was unable to travel. I know Valentino spoke to Marco’s family on my behalf and I thank him for that. It was a great service and a fitting celebration of his life. I also wanted to be in Valencia next week to give my support to MotoGP, but it is not going to be possible because of the surgery I need on my left arm. The top of my left humerus bone has got multiple small fractures but the cartilage that is around the top of the bone has been pulled off. The surgery will anchor the cartilage back to the bone but there is no nerve damage, so I should be 100 per cent in about four weeks,” said Edwards.

His team is currently considering a replacement rider for Valencia and the Yamaha factory team has yet to confirm if Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies will be fit to ride next weekend.

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The rumor broke late Friday afternoon when several websites reported that Andrea Dovizioso had signed with Yamaha Tech3 for the 2012 season after spending ten years with Honda.

This rumor has now been officially confirmed and Dovizioso will be fielded alongside Cal Crutchlow and will be riding a satellite Yamaha next year, when MotoGP reverts back to the 1000cc format. The Italian hopes that he’ll then be considered for a Yamaha full factory ride in 2013, when both Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies’ contracts expire.

Andrea Dovizioso:

“I’m happy to have reached this agreement with Tech 3 for next year and I want to thank Hervé Poncharal for the opportunity he is giving me. I am excited to become part of Hervé’s squad and to be teamed with Cal. I am sure this new challenge will be exciting, motivating and fun. Now that 2012 is sorted I want to focus on finishing the season in the best possible way.”



Continue reading: Andrea Dovizioso and Yamaha Tech3 deal officially confirmed

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According to German website Speedweek.de Andrea Dovizioso has finally made up his mind and will be riding for Yamaha Tech3 next season, even in the final contract details have yet to be ironed out.

Dovizioso who has spent his entire career racing for Honda, will make the move to the satellite Yamaha team after Repsol Honda decided to cut their racing budget. Honda boss Shuhei Nakamoto wanted to keep the Italian and had offered him a full factory bike but riding for LCR’s Honda team, but apparently the Italian rider was not happy that rival Marco Simoncelli, who is behind him in the standings will be receiving the same preferential treatment and instead has opted for a one year contract with Herve Poncharal’s squad.

As Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies’ contracts expire at the end of 2012, Dovizioso is hoping that he can move up to the factory team.

With ‘Dovi’ to be teamed with Cal Crutchlow, Eugene Laverty who was also on Tech3’s short list will probably remain in World Superbikes, with several sources reporting that he has signed with Aprilia to partner Max Biaggi, while others are reporting that he’ll be in BMW Italia, while John Hopkins and Randy de Puniet are on Lucio Cecchinello’s shopping list in case the deal with Dovizioso fell through.

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Two time AMA Superbike Champion Josh Hayes will be getting a gift from Yamaha America and Monster Energy as he will be allowed to test ride Yamaha’s Tech3 MotoGP bike during the first MotoGP post season test that takes place at Valencia.

“It’s just an opportunity to go ride the machine, no pressure, have some fun. And see what it’s all about, see what I can learn from it and I’m excited for that opportunity,” said Hayes.

Yamaha Tech3’s Herve Poncharal has yet to confirm who will replace Colin Edwards in his 2012 line-up. The latest rumors say that negotiations are still ongoing with Andrea Dovizioso (who is reluctant to lose his Red Bull sponsor), Eugene Laverty, as well as Alvaro Bautista.

Source | cyclenews.com

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Herve Poncharal must be in love with his rider Bradley Smith, because the French manager announced that the has signed a three-year agreement with the British youngster will continue to ride for his Moto2 team in 2012 and get this, the long term agreement also forsees that Smith will be in MotoGP in 2013 and 2014 with his Yamaha Tech3 squad.

Moto2 rookie Xavier Simeon (sponsored by RTL-Sport) has also received the confirmation that he’ll be staying with the French Moto2 team in 2012.

An estactic Bradley Smith said, “I am thrilled to have signed a three-year deal with the Tech 3 Racing Team and I am looking forward to continuing the excellent relationship we’ve developed in 2011. I have a fantastic relationship with Herve, my crew chief Tom Jojic and all my crew, who all have an amazing passion for racing. It is that dedication and desire to succeed that convinced me to join Tech 3 in 2011, so to be staying until the end of 2014 is the perfect scenario for me. There was never any doubt in my mind that Tech 3 would be the best option to develop my career. It has been flattering to have attracted interest from so many top teams in Moto2, but the opportunity to move to MotoGP in 2013 was simply too good for me to turn down. To think I’ll be riding a Yamaha 1000cc MotoGP bike just over a year from now is hard to believe. I’ve worked so hard for many years to earn the chance to be given an opportunity like this, and now it has come I intend to grab it with both hands. Tech 3 gave me the chance to move to MotoGP in 2012 and it was an honour to be even considered at this stage of my career. The decision to stay in Moto2 was one of the hardest of my life but I believe that together, we can be fighting at the front from the start of next season and pushing to challenge for the Championship.”

Continue reading: Bradley Smith gets three-year deal with Tech3 - to ride in MotoGP in 2013 and 2014

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I come from a family with a very strong history in being runners-up. A couple of generation’s of school reports include words like “diligent”, “consistent” and even “above average” but never “champion” or “outstanding”. Our family heirlooms include a series of runners-up trophies in everything from tennis, to golf, to football.

Which is why I totally dig a guy like Colin Edwards. He might not be up there with the Rossi’s (though not this season), Stoner’s and Lorenzo’s of the world but if there’s someone MotoGP needs right now, it’s people like him. Not just because he’s funny, irreverent and a character, but because he proves that you can make a career in this business without appearing among the “best of” statistics all the time with multiple championship wins under your belt. I don’t want to suggest he’s not a champion in his own right, but he really proves that there are other qualities that make a rider.

Edwards is expected to make an announcement this weekend at the Misano MotoGP round on his future, but he’s got plenty of options and some tantalising prospects, among which are remaining with the Yamaha Tech3 team because of his development skills, or again for those skills to move to one of the new CRT teams (rumoured connections with NGM Forward Racing here). Original rumours that Edwards was going out to pasture in World Superbikes seem to have abated and he’s stated he wants to stay where he is. More after the jump.

Continue reading: Colin Edwards MotoGP future

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It looks like Colin Edwards doesn’t want to retire at the end of this MotoGP season and still wants to ride, but as he’s kind of getting long in the tooth for the very youngish MotoGP grid, and despite some good performances including a 3rd place podium at Silverstone a week after collarbone surgery, the 37-year old Texan could make a return to World Superbikes next year and try to take on oldies, but goldies Superbike leaders Carlos Checa (38) and Max Biaggi (40).

Edwards was poised to make the switch last season and was negotiating with Ducati Xerox until the Italian manufacturer decided to pull out their factory effort, while this time the American is in talks with the BMW Motorrad team, even though there may be other options as he revealed to GPWeek.

While the highly popular Edwards hopes to stay on with Yamaha Tech3 for another year, team owner Herve Poncharal has been inundated with requests from riders to take over Edwards M1. Current Moto2 points leader Stefan Bradl has been eyed by Yamaha’s head honcho Lin Jarvis very early on (unless the German rider ends up on Honda and with an all German team under Lucio Cecchinello’s watch) which could be an option as Yamaha would directly foot Bradl’s contract. English rider Bradley Smith could make the vertical move from Poncharal’s Moto2 team and team up with Cal Crutchlow which would make it popular with British fans and the BBC, as could Eugene Laverty.

The Northern Irishman had talks with the French manager at Brno, after losing his 2012 WSBK ride when Yamaha made their shock pullout announcement and is recorded as saying he’s “optimistic” about a MotoGP ride. Randy de Puniet is also rumored to make the switch to World Superbikes, and he’s always been on Poncharal’s wishlist, with the manager’s eye on the marketing appeal of a French rider in a French team to pull in more sponsors.

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Cal Crutchlow was in serious doubt whether he’d be able take part in this weekend’s Assen GP after undergoing collarbone surgery just last week that left him in serious pain.

However, his pain level must have greatly diminished over these last few days and rehabilitation must be going well, because he’s tweeted “For update ! Yes I will ride at assen … see how I am on Thursday etc and go from there.”

With the Yamaha Tech3 rider attempting to ride the grid, will be back to sixteen riders with only Dani Pedrosa still uncertain whether he’ll be returning after missing the last two GP’s and undergoing a second surgery last Thursday.

It’ll also be interesting to see if Crutchlow will have anything to say to team mate Colin Edwards when he entertained fans at Silverstone with “I’d like to do her” referring to Crutchlow’s girlfriend Lucy.

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Cal Crutchlow has finally undergone surgery to repair his left collarbone that he fractured during qualifying at Silverstone after surgery was delayed for two days as doctors assessed a suspected non-displacement fracture of his C2 vertebrae.

Given the all clear after CAT scans showed no damage to his neck, the Yamaha Tech3 rider was transferred to the Royal Derby Hospital where he underwent surgery to have a titanium plate and several screws inserted in the shoulder.

Unfortunately Crutchlow reported that his break is a lot worse that the one suffered by team mate Colin Edwards, who raced to a third place podium at the Silverstone GP nine days after breaking his right collarbone. The American would have tried to race even the day after surgery in order not to break his 141 race starts record if the circuit doctors at Catalunya hadn’t nixed it. Edwards however, reported that he had no pain after surgery, quite different from his team mate’s current situation.

Continue reading: Cal Crutchlow undergoes surgery, Assen in doubt

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We know that Colin Edwards would never had been on the podium at Silverstone today if Jorge Lorenzo and Marco Simoncelli hadn’t binned it under torrential rain showers, but he was running a very solid fifth, much better than more titled riders considering that he had his collarbone plated just last week. Heroic and stoic are probably the best words to describe the Texas Tornado this weekend.

“That was an unbelievable race and to finish on the podium feels amazing. I was happy to qualify eighth but never in a million years did I think I’d be on the podium just over a week after breaking my collarbone. I need to thank Dr Xavier Mir for the repair job he did on my shoulder and also my guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3 because they gave me a phenomenal bike today. My shoulder felt great and it was the muscle damage around my ribs that caused me the most pain. But the rain definitely helped because it was a lot less physical than in the dry. I just gritted my teeth and got on with it, just trying to stay smooth and not make any mistakes. Conditions were pretty bad and it was a case of working out when and where you could push. I’d have been happy to fin ish the race and then go home to think about Assen. But I saw a few people succumbing to the conditions and I saw P3 on by board and I couldn’t believe it. At that time though there were still eight or nine laps to go and I couldn’t feel my hands or my feet because it was so wet and cold. It was difficult but it was a good way to the end the weekend for the Team after what happened to Cal. Nobody wants to get hurt, but being injured for your home race is really tough to take, so I wish him a quick recovery and hope to see him back in Assen.”

Team mate Cal Crutchlow who broke his left collarbone in three places on Saturday during qualifying, is still in the John Radcliffe Hospital with no decision having yet to made if the surgery he’ll need will be carried out in Oxford or in Manchester, where the doctor who did his previous shoulder surgery is. The Brit is also being assessed for a neck injury.

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