Friday pm - Poncharal: Just Why I Chose Toseland

So just why did Yamaha Tech 3 boss Hervé Poncharal buck the current trend of luring 20-year-old 250cc riders into MotoGP and choose James Toseland - 27 next year and with a seven-year heritage of Superbike racing - for his team in 2008.

Curiously, it wasn't just Toseland's ability to ride a bike that swayed the Frenchman. Perhaps more so than British and northern European teams, Latin people consider the human dimension - how you are as a person, how you conduct yourself, how you'll fit in - to be equally important. And it was here that Toseland scored a hit.

"I've spoken to many riders, but the one with whom I immediately felt the human contact was James," Poncharal said in a break during practice at Brno. "I've got a really good feeling about him as a person. Some of the up-and-coming young riders can be a bit prima donna, but you don't get that with James. Of all the riders eligible, he was easily the one who matched what we wanted."

Poncharal doesn't consider that Toseland might be too old when he joins the MotoGP circus next year, or that his Superbike background might hamper him.

"He's used to riding big bikes, and he's raced with people like Bayliss, Biaggi and Haga," Poncharal said. "And remember what happened the last time that Bayliss rode a MotoGP bike [the Australian won at Valencia last year in a one-off outing on Ducati's 990cc Desmosedici after clinching the world Superbike title]."

If there was one other factor that convinced Poncharal that he had got the right man, it was the way Toseland handled himself at the Brands Hatch World Superbike round earlier this month.

"It was a crucial event for him," Poncharal said. "It was his home round, and it was important to him to prove that he was a great rider. He had just come back from a disappointing race in the Suzuka 8 Hours, where he crashed, and he was suffering from jetlag.

"But he made the announcement that he was joining Tech 3 Yamaha, handled all the media congratulations before Brands Hatch, the pressure of being the championship leader and the crowd's expectations, won two races and extended his points lead. For me that was the mark of a great champion."


Friday pm - Dunlop Fight to Keep Tech 3

There's been widespread speculation that Tech 3 will switch to Michelin or Bridgestone next, but Dunlop competition chief Jeremy Ferguson confirmed at Brno that he's fighting to retain the link with the French team.