Tech 3 boss hails ‘fantastic’ Andrea Dovizioso

Andrea Dovizioso’s performances in the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 squad last season have been hailed as ‘fantastic’, as the Italian prepares for the tough challenge of making Ducati’s factory Desmosedici a competitive force in 2013.

Dovizioso turned down the chance of riding a factory-backed Honda RC213V machine in the LCR squad for 2012 in a bid to join Yamaha to try and secure a factory YZR-M1 in the future.

The former 125GP world champion switched to Herve Poncharal’s Tech 3 squad last season and became the most successful rider in the French team’s MotoGP history.

He scored six podium finishes including three in successive races in Assen, Sachsenring and Mugello and he easily finished leading non-factory rider to finish fourth in the overall rankings.

With British teammate Cal Crutchlow also excelling in 2012 with two podium finishes and a host of other top results, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team easily outscored Ducati’s factory squad.

Poncharal has hailed Dovizioso’s contribution, with the 26-year-old moving to Ducati for 2013 having been overlooked for a ride alongside Jorge Lorenzo in Yamaha’s official factory team.

Poncharal told MCN: “Andrea was fantastic for us. A podium has always been difficult for a satellite team but he scored his first for us after only five races.

“It was an incredible feeling what he did for us. A season with one or two podiums is extraordinary, so to already have eight in total gave us a great feeling inside the team.

“Andrea certainly gave us a lot of exposure and he proved that if you work hard with your team you can get on the podium.

“Andrea could have come here and said he used to be a factory rider and maybe cruise and do two or three years and finish in World Superbikes. But he came to us saying we can make podiums and show everybody that he is worth a factory ride.

“When he decided to leave us as well he said it was only because the offer he got from Ducati was almost impossible to turn down. I am sad but I understand and I’m really happy that we have helped him get another factory ride.”