You cannot deny the fact that Colin Edwards has a new found strength since joining the Yamaha satellite team Tech3. The YZR-M1, which was developed with substantial input from Valentino Rossi, has found further refinement in the Monster Tech3 garage with the help from Edwards. Already known as a good development rider, Edwards may see an offer from Tech3 boss Herve Poncharal to continue test riding, after the Texan’s racing career has concluded.
After what was rumored to be Edwards’ last season of racing, Colin has stayed on with Tech3 to race with fellow Texan prodigy Ben Spies, with some speculation being made that Edwards’ role in team includes brining the new talent up to speed in MotoGP and on the YZR-M1.
With Tech3 also now entering into the fray of chassis development in Moto2, the team’s needs have expanded beyond what a normal racing team’s duties normally entail. Having a test rider on staff who can provide valuable information not only on how to setup the motorcycle for race day, but also on how to build the motorcycle in the first place is an invaluable skillset to have on-board.
Talking about Colin’s development abilities, Poncharal alluded to Edwards’ involvement in their Moto2 project. “Colin has helped a little bit with the Moto2,” he said. “At Valencia we brought the bike, which was not completely ready, but we showed it in the hospitality without the fairing. Colin sat on it and gave Guy [Coulon] a lot of information, like changing the shape of the tank etc.”
Poncharal went on to further praise Edwards’ abilities saying, “You can rely on Colin’s comments. Always. You just have to ask Yamaha, Ohlins, Brembo and especially Bridgestone how good Colin is as a test rider and at being able to explain to all the engineers, in every department, what he is feeling. For me he is the top guy for that. Maybe the top guy.”
Source: Crash.net
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