Redding reveals new crew chief for '17

Scott Redding has confirmed that Christian Pupulin will replace the outgoing Giacomo Guidotti as his crew chief in the Pramac Ducati MotoGP squad for 2017.

As the MotoGP rider's market was all-but-sealed by the summer break, it was then the turn of crew chiefs and technicians to find a new home for the upcoming season.

A space in Redding's garage was created when Guidotti received a call to work with Dani Pedrosa for 2017,news that broke at Misano, and Redding and the Pramac squad have been searching for an able replacement since.

As an engineer for Ducati Corse, Pupulin is currently working with Redding in the Pramac squad and the pair have had the opportunity to assess one another's methods throughout the year.

After securing a fighting seventh place in the Australian race, Redding confirmed to Crash.net that Pupulin, who was Andrea Dovizioso's crew chief from 2013 to '15 and has been part of the Bologna factory since 2002, will step into the void left by Guidotti.

"Having a new crew chief is like having a new bike," said Redding, currently embroiled in an inter-team fight with Danilo Petrucci for a Ducati GP17 for the following year.

"They have a different outlook on things. Like I said, we've worked a bit [together] so it's not too bad. At the end of the day, the crew chief is there to do a job and to make it work, you know? It's not a complete stranger, which is a good thing.

"Normally it's good to have the same bike, the same crew chief one, two, three years. You see Valentino and all the top guys keeping the same guy because you get a relationship.

"Me and Giacomo [have been working] together for one year, but it's not like Pete Benson [Redding's crew chief in Moto2] for four or five years. He was like my dad. Trying to get a relationship with someone that's been in Ducati maybe will help me a little bit."

The news that Guidotti would leave for Repsol Honda to replace the outgoing Ramon Aurin was a blow for Redding, who had quickly established a strong working relationship with the Italian.

However he now feels that working with a new face that has intimate knowledge of the factory will provide added motivation going into 2017.

"He [Pupulin] has got experience with Ducati, which is good. He sees all the information from everyone. At the end of the day that might actually benefit me.

"It's always nice to have someone new, for the motivation. Giacomo has got great motivation but he's moved onto different things. I have to accept that and work as best I can with the factory guy."