Suzuki play down Andrea Dovizioso talks

Suzuki boss Paul Denning has played down talks with impressive Italian rookie Andrea Dovizioso.

Although it seems certain that Suzuki will retain its current 2008 factory line-up with Chris Vermeulen and Loris Capirossi, Dovizioso insists he is still locked in negotiations about a GSV-R slot next season.

Although it is widely expected that the former world 125 champion will remain with Honda, moving to the factory squad in place of Ducati bound American Nicky Hayden, Dovizioso told MCN: “Now we are speaking about the contract but it is not only Honda as a solution. I’m not sure to go there. We need to fix many points and also I am interested in Suzuki. I need to consider both contracts and I need to decide as soon as possible.”

Dovizioso did rule himself out of early season speculation that had him linked with Kawasaki’s factory squad when he added: “The best solution for me now is Suzuki and Honda.”

Rizla Suzuki boss Denning though denied any series negotiations had been conducted with Dovizioso and he said: “At the moment our priority hasn’t really changed and we are negotiating with Chris’s management and trying to find a solution there. If that can be achieved as we hope it will be then we haven’t really got any issues. If it can’t be achieved and there was an opportunity with a rider like Andrea we’d be head over heels to look at it. The only thing I can say is that everybody uses their own tactic in order to find their best solution and I think the description of serious discussions is something you can take with a pinch of salt.”