Edwards desperate for more speed

Colin Edwards has joined factory Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi in pleading for his YZR-M1 to get an urgent power upgrade.

Rossi begged Yamaha engineers for a horsepower upgrade after factory Ducati rider Casey Stoner beat him into second place in the season’s opening race in Qatar.

The Australian had a huge advantage on the straights which prompted Rossi to request drastic improvements with the Yamaha four-cylinder machine.

Double World Superbike champion Edwards, who slumped to a disappointing sixth place finish in the Middle East, has echoed Rossi’s demands.

Edwards had the second slowest bike in Qatar and is worried that the Yamaha will be blown away on long straights at tracks like Shanghai, Mugello and Barcelona.

He said: “Somewhere like Jerez or the Sachsenring in the tight twisty stuff won’t be too bad.

“But when we get to China we are going to be in big trouble.

“Ducati was 0.3s faster on the straight in Qatar and in China the straight is doubled, so it will be more than half a second. We need some more power.”