Which Way Does The Tornado Blow?
Colin Edwards Considers His Options
by dean adams
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
The person in the picture above is Colin Edwards II.
Today's announcement that Yamaha has hired Jorge Lorenzo raises an interesting question: what does this mean for Colin Edwards' future on the Yamaha MotoGP team?
Edwards is in the final year of his current Yamaha contract.
Yamaha went to great lengths in the release detailing Lorenzo's hiring to NOT state which team he'll be racing on.
The release reads: The exact structure of Yamaha's team and rider organization is still under consideration at the present time.
Presumably, there are two spots on the factory team and two more on the "Dunlop" team, although slotting him anywhere but on the factory team does seem unlikely.
There could be two spots on the factory team open in '08. A relatively easy way for Yamaha to get Rossi on Bridgestones would be to put him on the B team, on 'stones. Unlikely, yes, but possible. This would leave two open spots on the factory team. Edwards and Lorenzo?
In fact, Edwards could slot in on any number of MotoGP teams for 2008, Yamaha or not. But at 33, Edwards has got to be thinking about what he wants to accomplish before hanging up his leathers.
Some conventional wisdom sees Edwards possibly back in WSBK...unless you ask him. He has no interest in going back to World Superbike. Less than zero, actually.
However one series Edwards does have interest in, as out-of-left-field as it may sound, is the US Superbike series.
Edwards wasn't able to win the US Superbike title before he left for Europe. And that seems to bother him, judging from a conversation after the race at Laguna last Sunday.
Edwards seemed quite interested in racing in the US for a year or two before he retires, for a few personal and professional reasons. "I'm 33," Edwards said. "I basically have had no adult life at all. I have no friends (at home) because I'm always in Europe. And, you know, I wasn't able to win the (US) Superbike title before I left."
Top US Superbike riders command large salaries—Mat Mladin makes more in salary than many factory WSBK riders. The fact that he owns a multi-million dollar airplane speaks for itself. Moreover, as compared to that of a MotoGP rider, life in US Superbike is relatively low key. You're home in your own bed Monday night. Racing in front of your family doesn't mean fourteen-hour plane rides and trying to get your kids to try sushi because that's all the hotel restaurant seems to serve.
Asked to rate his interest level in racing here in the US, Edwards said it isn't just mild interest. "My interest level on that is really quite high," he said in his motorhome. "If I can't get the deal on the team I want in MotoGP, then maybe I'll just go fishing. Or, maybe I'll race here."
Asked to define what he would need to race in the US, Edwards said it would take the right team, equipment, and pay package.
With that understood, it's a natural to immediately link Edwards with a Yamaha US Superbike ride. Edwards is beloved by Yamaha US, and he has very close ties to the US racing department.
Both of Yamaha's US Superbike riders, Eric Bostrom and Jason DiSalvo, are in the final year of their contracts with Yamaha.
ENDS
Colin Edwards Considers His Options
by dean adams
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
The person in the picture above is Colin Edwards II.
Today's announcement that Yamaha has hired Jorge Lorenzo raises an interesting question: what does this mean for Colin Edwards' future on the Yamaha MotoGP team?
Edwards is in the final year of his current Yamaha contract.
Yamaha went to great lengths in the release detailing Lorenzo's hiring to NOT state which team he'll be racing on.
The release reads: The exact structure of Yamaha's team and rider organization is still under consideration at the present time.
Presumably, there are two spots on the factory team and two more on the "Dunlop" team, although slotting him anywhere but on the factory team does seem unlikely.
There could be two spots on the factory team open in '08. A relatively easy way for Yamaha to get Rossi on Bridgestones would be to put him on the B team, on 'stones. Unlikely, yes, but possible. This would leave two open spots on the factory team. Edwards and Lorenzo?
In fact, Edwards could slot in on any number of MotoGP teams for 2008, Yamaha or not. But at 33, Edwards has got to be thinking about what he wants to accomplish before hanging up his leathers.
Some conventional wisdom sees Edwards possibly back in WSBK...unless you ask him. He has no interest in going back to World Superbike. Less than zero, actually.
However one series Edwards does have interest in, as out-of-left-field as it may sound, is the US Superbike series.
Edwards wasn't able to win the US Superbike title before he left for Europe. And that seems to bother him, judging from a conversation after the race at Laguna last Sunday.
Edwards seemed quite interested in racing in the US for a year or two before he retires, for a few personal and professional reasons. "I'm 33," Edwards said. "I basically have had no adult life at all. I have no friends (at home) because I'm always in Europe. And, you know, I wasn't able to win the (US) Superbike title before I left."
Top US Superbike riders command large salaries—Mat Mladin makes more in salary than many factory WSBK riders. The fact that he owns a multi-million dollar airplane speaks for itself. Moreover, as compared to that of a MotoGP rider, life in US Superbike is relatively low key. You're home in your own bed Monday night. Racing in front of your family doesn't mean fourteen-hour plane rides and trying to get your kids to try sushi because that's all the hotel restaurant seems to serve.
Asked to rate his interest level in racing here in the US, Edwards said it isn't just mild interest. "My interest level on that is really quite high," he said in his motorhome. "If I can't get the deal on the team I want in MotoGP, then maybe I'll just go fishing. Or, maybe I'll race here."
Asked to define what he would need to race in the US, Edwards said it would take the right team, equipment, and pay package.
With that understood, it's a natural to immediately link Edwards with a Yamaha US Superbike ride. Edwards is beloved by Yamaha US, and he has very close ties to the US racing department.
Both of Yamaha's US Superbike riders, Eric Bostrom and Jason DiSalvo, are in the final year of their contracts with Yamaha.
ENDS
