Thursday, November 13, 2008
Colin Edwards, a Houston native nicknamed "The Texas Tornado," offered candid insight before every MotoGP event in 2008 about the characteristics of the upcoming circuit, his tactics and possible motorcycle setup for the weekend, the personalities and rivalries of the exciting world of MotoGP, and personal anecdotes about the region where each event takes place in "Tornado Warning."
Two-time World Superbike champion Edwards, 34, recently finished his sixth year of MotoGP competition, riding this season for Tech 3 Yamaha. He finished seventh in the season standings and will return to Tech 3 Yamaha with teammate James Toseland in 2009.
The colorful Edwards competed in the inaugural Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Sept. 14 at IMS along with fellow American stars Nicky Hayden, John Hopkins and Ben Spies, and MotoGP superstars Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa.
Edwards summarized his 2008 season in this special edition of "Tornado Warning."
Did you sense entering this year that it would be different for you because you went to a satellite team after three years on a factory team?
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I don't know. I knew it would be different, being with a different crew. But Yamaha agreed to support me more or less the same I was on the factory team. Even on the factory team, everything was concentrated so hard on Valentino. My updates, when I was on the factory team, they came when it was possible. I didn't get stuff the same time as Valentino did. Same as Lorenzo is not getting them the same time as Valentino. Valentino always gets the stuff first if it's available. I felt like I got pretty much the same type of help that I got last year, as far as Yamaha, from that point of view. I expected that, really. Just getting used to the crew, really. That was the main thing.
What were the biggest differences between being Valentino's teammate on the factory team and the team leader on a satellite team?
It's funny, most every team that I've been on throughout my career, I've always been more or less the team leader. From the States here, Superbike days, World Superbike days, I'd always been the No. 1 guy on just about all of the teams I've been on. Even with the Aprilia MotoGP ride (in 2003). And then with Sete (Gibernau), obviously he was the No. 1 guy with the satellite team over there (Honda Telefonica in 2004) and then comes Valentino. So it was pretty much four years; I've spent four years being the second guy. It felt good to come back over and kind of be the guy pulling the team through.
So it didn't take you long to adjust to team leadership with Tech 3 since you had done it so often earlier in your career?
Yeah. I kind of felt like that was where I belonged. I think anybody would probably tell you that. Nobody really likes being overshadowed by a teammate or a superstar teammate, much less. But at the same time, I don't regret any of time over there. I had fun. We had a good time, and I learned a lot while I was there. So no complaints.
What was it like to work with a rookie this season who had just won two World Superbike titles? Sounds a lot like a guy we know who came to MotoGP in 2003. Did you see a lot of yourself from 2003 this year in James Toseland?
That's a hard question to answer, really. I know what I did on that Aprilia. That Aprilia wasn't a Yamaha. I know we had some good days, some good sessions. That bike was so finicky that you could have a good session, which didn't really mean anything except that it was that one session. You could break it out for the second session in the afternoon, and the thing could be completely frickin' different. Even though you had tested, it was just getting the thing to work right. Oil was covering the back tire or blowing up in flames or whatever the hell it was. Whatever was going on. In all honesty, with James, I didn't see those moments near as much as what I had as far as stellar performances, even if it be a practice session or a test day or something just to show … My determination back then, I'm sure was probably a lot more it is now. I was bound and determinted to show these guys it didn't matter what bike I was on; it was still two black, round tires that I could get around the track. I don't know. It's just different. I can't say a whole lot of myself, to be honest.
What were your expectations entering this season?
My expectations were top five, for sure. I felt like we had every opportunity to finish (in the top five), and we still did have every opportunity to finish in the top five until I think we went five races in a row, and we only gained two points in those five races. Tire issues. And obviously, any time you have a tire problem and then you start jacking around with the bike, trying to make the whole package better, then you just get further and further away from the right settings.
Knowing that the problem was mainly due to tires during the dry spell, are you content when you look back at this season or unhappy? You had said a number of times this year that you were riding as hard as ever.
Man, honestly, this is one of the first years that I've been in Grand Prix, and apart from the few tire issues that we had, that really felt good. Especially the last couple of races we did, with Malaysia and Valencia, we got back to our standard setting and just felt good again. I think we started, made a big circle and came back to where we started, more or less. Man, I rode some good races this year. I was really happy with a couple of my performances. Assen, in particular, being dead last in the first few corners and then finishing on the podium. I was happy with that. There was a couple of good performances in there that I was happy with. As far as the year in general, it's a roller coaster. You've got ups and downs, but that's racing.
A few quick questions. Best, worst, etc. Your best race of the season. Was that Assen?
Yeah, Assen.
What was your worst race of the season?
Laguna.
What was your funniest moment of the season, off the bike or on the bike?
I don't know. My interviews were pretty funny. There were a couple of interviews that are probably the funniest thing I can think of.
Scariest moment? The save in China, maybe?
Sitting on the grid in Misano with a tire that I knew was ice-cold and had to chunk it into a corner with 18 guys around me. That wasn't nice. Just Turn 1, just sitting on the grid knowing this tire is going to take three or four laps to heat up, and a couple of races before, I saw what happened to Lorenzo at Laguna. So that was pretty gnarly.
What was the best road trip of the year?
Hell, that's easy. My driver, Paul, was driving, and we went from Mugello to Barcelona. I had a buddy of mine, Derek, a big, old ice hockey player from here - he's actually Canadian - he did those two races with me. He did the whole road trip, took the boat, took the ferry to Barcelona. That was fun.
What are your expectations and goals for 2009?
Much the same. I definitely would like to put our team up in the top five. We had a good team run this year between me and James. I think we finished top five in the team championship. We need to, for a satellite team, we need to strive a little harder. You need to look at, what are there, four or five factory teams out there? We've got to improve that a little bit.
Touchy subject, but what's your career path from here? Do you have anything mapped out, or are you just taking it year by year?
I don't know, man. I've been looking at the porn business. (Laughter) I don't know. I'm just happy. I'm happy doing what I'm doing. I can't wait to get on the bike. I haven't had that, let's say, in the last few years. I'm real excited to get back on the bike and really excited to go testing at the end of this month. I think when that stops, then it's probably time to throw in the towel. But at the moment, I just can't see it happening.
A few predictions for next year. The first one is easy. The champion will be?
Valentino Rossi.
Biggest surprise rider next season? It doesn't have to be a rookie. It can be anyone.
I'm going to say myself, getting on Bridgestones. That front (tire), everybody seems to be really happy with the front with Bridgestones, and I've always been a front-end guy. So I'm going to say me.
You've had a long relationship with Michelin throughout your career. Do you anticipate any problems adjusting to Bridgestone?
Nah. I think everybody that's gone from Michelin to Bridgestone adapts really, fairly rapidly. I think the other way might be a problem, coming from Bridgestone to Michelin. But no, I don't think it's an issue. I think it will be a rapid transition.
Any rookies next season who we should look for? The last few years there have been some strong rookies - Pedrosa, Lorenzo, Dovizioso.
Honestly, I really don't know if we have a Lorenzo coming up. There are a couple of guys coming over. That will have to be a wait and see. No real predictions on that. I don't want to downplay anybody or pump anybody's ego, but show me on the track, and then we'll roll with it.
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