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MOTOGP: House Call
Crew chief Tom Houseworth talks to SPEEDtv.com about making the MotoGP transition with superstar Ben Spies.
Evan Williams  |  Posted April 02, 2010   Gallatin, TN
Tom Houseworth and Ben Spies (Photo: Yamaha Racing)

Mechanic Tom Houseworth has a unique insight into American MotoGP racer Ben Spies. He’s been his crew chief since his first factory ride with Yoshimura Suzuki beginning way back in 2003.

'House,' who previously worked with riders Tom Kipp, Jamie Hacking, Anthony Gobert, Tommy Hayden, and Jamie James, was there as Spies climbed the racing ladder. Ben won three AMA Pro Superbike titles with Suzuki before the move to World Superbike last season where he won Yamaha their first-ever crown in the class. Now together they are moving into the Grand Prix world with the satellite Tech3 Yamaha squad.

With the Qatar round nearly upon us, Houseworth spoke with SPEEDtv.com about Spies and MotoGP.

Spies’ speed in preseason testing has been impressive and the Texan has quickly adapted to the blazingly-fast-but-fickle 800cc MotoGP bikes. He’s been in the top five during testing and has shown the pace to make his mark in the World Championship. Some feel Spies might be able to run with “the aliens” in the first races of 2010 and perhaps a re-hash of 2009 that saw him kick down the door in World Superbike is in order.

But when Spies was announced as having a MotoGP seat late last summer, the Texan downplayed expectations. He said in the beginning, he’d just be happy to score points. Has his preseason success changed any of that? House says no.

“We are, to an extent. You have the fastest guys on the planet out there. There are a lot of fast men in MotoGP all the way through the field, so the thing about scoring points -- that’s pretty true. That’s what we want to do,” said the Californian. “We’re not coming into this thinking we can do anything like last year. This is really hard work for every lap. I guess the first thing you have to do is beat your own teammate and Colin Edwards is a really good rider. That’s the first thing to do before you think about anything else and that is going to be a formidable task."


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