Best of British: The power behind Mir’s MotoGP throne

The ex-BSB crew chief who went on to win the 2020 MotoGP title with Joan Mir

‘When they told me it was Mir I was interested’

‘I learned a lot about what goes on behind the scenes!’

On November 15 2020 Frankie Carchedi won the biggest prize in racing. The 43-year-old Brit is Joan Mir’s factory Ecstar Suzuki crew chief and the man that has steered the Spaniard from MotoGP rookie in 2019 to champion in 2020. Carchedi’s road to the very pinnacle of motorsport is the product of 20 years of graft with time spent working in BSB, WSB and ultimately MotoGP. His route to the top has not been achieved through chance, but there was a little bit of luck in the early days… “I did a four-year mechanical engineering degree at Loughborough university,” explained Carchedi. “My ambition was to get into F1, but by pure chance I was o pening up an ISA account in the Halifax and I met Leslie who is Colin Wright’s wife. We got chatting and she explained that Colin was the manager of GSE Ducati, racing in BSB. I spoke to him that evening and he invited me to a test with Mackenzie and Hodgson.” Carchedi impressed Wright and was offered a job working on telemetry for both riders using the Magneti Marelli electronics system. “I got to sent to the Ducati factory to do a training course, I was lucky it was a new system because it was a lot simpler than it is today.” In addition to being on a steep datalogging learning curve, Carchedi saw how Wright, one of the UK’s most successful team managers, operated.

“Colin used to pick me up and drop me off and I was privy to conversations with riders plus lawyers as it was the year the whole Hodgson vs Chris Walker thing kicked off. I learned a lot about what goes on behind the scenes!” Having won the BSB crown in 2000, Carchedi moved with the team to WSB with Hodgson and James Toseland. In 2004 he switched to the Renegade Ducati squad working with Nori Haga and Leon Haslam and came close to winning the title. 2005 saw him re-united with GSE who were now back in the BSB paddock. Working as Gregorio Lavilla’s crew chief they won the 2005 BSB title. And again in 2009 with Leon Camier, still in the GSE team, but on the new R1. That success led to him being offered a job by Yamaha MotoGP team manger Mio Meregalli to work with Toseland for the full factory Yamaha WSB team. In 2011 he partnered Eugene Laverty on what he thought was a two-year programme to win the title, but despite race wins, Yamaha pulled out of WSB at the end of 2011.

“In 2012 I joined Crescent Suzuki

in WSB working with Camier. And it was here that my relationship started with Shinichi Sahara and Ken Kawauchi [who now head up the Suzuki MotoGP team]. It was Crescent’s first year in WSB and coming from a factory Yamaha team it was tough, but it turned out to be one of the best moves of my career.” Carchedi’s knowledge of the Magneti Marelli electronics made him a man in demand in MotoGP. “In 2014 I got asked by Aspar to assist them as it was the start of the CRT era. I worked as an engineer on the electronics, working directly with Nicky Hayden.” Carchedi stayed with Aspar but continued to enjoy a cordial relationship with the guys at the

Suzuki MotoGP squad

“I’d been asked to go to Suzuki a number of times, but I’d always said I wanted to go there with a young rider. With my experience of working with less experienced riders – Hodgson, Camier, Laverty – I know that it’s one of my strengths. The moment they told me it was Mir I was interested, because you watch all the young riders coming through and how they ride and I knew there was something about him. “The first time I met him was at the end of 2018 at Phillip Island when he was in Moto2. He was in the garage next to us and I went and said: ‘Hello mate, we’re going to be working together next year.’ “And the rest is history!”