One year short of their 20th anniversary the Tech3 Yamaha Team have made a sizeable impression in the MotoGP paddock over their 19 years of existence. Originally supporting 250cc racer Dominique Sarron it was the presence of another Gallic quarter-litre racer in the form of Olivier Jacque that really pushed their profile onto the next level.

The 2000 250cc world championship saw the team’s two riders, Jacque and Shinya Nakano, go head-to-head for the title in an entertaining campaign. The fraction of a second that split the pair of YZR250s at Phillip Island at the finish line on the last lap of the final round decided the crown and remains still the closest climax ever to a championship dispute.

From 2001 Tech3 have been plying their trade in the premier class and their first MotoGP podium arrived in that season when Nakano managed third position on the YZR500 in Germany. From 2002 on the French team have been racing Yamaha’s MotoGP four-stroke machinery.

Their maiden silverware with the M1 was gained thanks to Alex Barros in 2003 and they have moved through a number of riders since including the likes of Norick Abe, Marco Melandri and Carlos Checa.
2008 saw a big change for the team as they moved back to Michelin from several years running Dunlop rubber and also had another completely new rider line-up with Colin Edwards bringing his three years of YZR-M1 experience to the fold and James Toseland providing a much needed representation for Great Britain to MotoGP. With two former double world superbike champions running the blue and yellow colours this season the crew have arguably their strongest roster for several years in the premier class and will be looking to the podium for the first time since 2004.

The crew, based in Bormes Les Mimosas in the south of France, now employs more than 20 people and recently cemented their strengthened ties with the factory by signing a deal to field YZR-M1 machinery until 2011.