Scott Redding supporting young British racing talent

Scott Redding’s commitment to supporting young British racing talent will move up a gear in 2014.

This year’s Moto2 world championship runner-up, who will move to MotoGP next season, has joined forces with Team Repli-Cast in the UK to give other British youngsters the opportunity to follow in his footsteps.

The new partnership provides a route to British Championship racing for talented young riders, as well as future graduates of Redding’s Young Riders Academy, which the 20-year-old Gresini Honda rider formed in 2012 to help youngsters break into motorcycle sport.

The first rider to benefit from the partnership is 12-year-old Charlie Nesbitt, who will contest the 2014 Monster Energy British Motostar Championship for Team Repli-Cast.

Nesbitt will contest the series on a Honda Moto3 machine supplied by former Mac VDS Racing rider Redding.

Redding will also be on hand to offer Nesbitt advice and guidance throughout 2014, to ensure that the youngster has the opportunity to realise his full potential during his debut British Championship season.

Redding said: “The Young Riders Academy was set up to help youngsters taking their first steps in the sport and it’s been very successful. The partnership with Team Repli-Cast is independent of the Academy, but it means we’re now in a position to help talented young riders like Charlie Nesbitt make the step up to the British Championship. All too often we see youngsters leave the sport because they simply don’t have the funding to progress to the next level, or they get little or no advice when they do make the step up. I know exactly what that’s like, because I’ve been there. Without the sacrifices and support of family and friends during the early stages of my career, I wouldn’t now be on the verge of making my MotoGP debut. Charlie has the talent to succeed and now he also has the chance to showcase that talent in the British Championship. I’m happy to be able to give him this opportunity, and to put something back into the sport that has been so good to me in recent years.”

Redding enjoyed his best season in 2013, winning three Moto2 races and collecting four other podium finishes. He led the Moto2 championship for the majority of the season until a broken wrist suffered in a qualifying at Phillip Island was the main factor in his defeat to Spanish rival Pol Espargaro.