Colin Edwards II (born February 27, 1974 in Houston, Texas) nicknamed the Texas Tornado is an American professional motorcycle racer. He is a two time World Superbike champion and has competed in MotoGP since 2003, now riding for the Yamaha Tech 3 team. Edwards has recently signed an extension to his contract to continue with the team for the 2010 season.

Early years

At the age of three, his Australian father, Colin Edwards Sr. (an amateur motorcycle racer himself), introduced him to a minibike, and Edwards entered his first motocross race at the age of four. Over the next ten years, Edwards became one of the top-ranked junior motocross competitors in the USA, winning dozens of races in the 50cc to 80cc categories in local, regional and national events.

In 1988 at the age of 14, Edwards stopped competing in motocross races, having become distracted by the normal demands of being a teenager. However in 1990, Edwards and his father attended a motorcycle road race event in north Texas, and this inspired him to attempt road racing.

In 1991 Edwards began competing in amateur road-racing events locally, but rapidly progressed to national events. He was undefeated in every amateur event he entered that year, and won numerous national amateur titles. His performance was sufficiently impressive for him to be offered a sponsored ride with South West Motorsports, and Edwards turned professional just before the commencement of the 1992 season.

Professional career

In his first professional season (1992), Edwards entered the AMA 250cc National Series. He won five of the nine races and the national title over second-place earner Kenny Roberts, Jr.. In 1993 and 1994 Edwards rode for Vance and Hines on a Yamaha in the AMA Superbike Championship, earning 6th and 5th place overall in those years.

Superbike World Championship

In , Edwards was offered a factory position with Yamaha in the Superbike World Championship. His results in were disappointing as Edwards struggled to adjust to the demands of competing in a global competition, and he missed the last two meetings after team-mate Yasutomo Nagai perished in a crash at Assen. In he achieved a greatly improved sixth overall in the Superbike World championship.

 was a disappointing year for Edwards as he was forced to withdraw from competing due to injuries sustained in the fifth round of the Superbike World Championship. He was replaced in the Yamaha World Superbike Team and was unable to negotiate a position in the 500cc Grand Prix competition. Fortunately Edwards was able to conclude a deal with Honda to ride the RC45 motorcycle in the   Superbike World Championship. Edwards finished fifth overall that year, and earned his first solo international victories with a double win at Monza followed by his 3rd win of the season at Brands Hatch.

In , Edwards managed several more victories for Honda (including leading teammate Aaron Slight home twice at Brands Hatch, giving Honda a rare Double-1-2) and ended the season in second overall position, behind champion Carl Fogarty. In , Edwards rode the new Honda VTR-1000 SP1/RC51 twin cylinder motorcycle to overall victory in the Superbike World Championship after Yamaha rider and points leader, Noriyuki Haga was disqualified for testing positive for a banned substance. Edwards came second to Ducati rider, Troy Bayliss in but reclaimed the title from Bayliss in in a dramatic fashion, clinching the championship in the final race of the season in Imola (Italy).

MotoGP World Championship

After winning his 2nd Superbike World Championship Edwards moved to MotoGP in 2003. He rode for the greatly troubled Aprilia team on the RS3 Cube, and his only notable accomplishment in that otherwise dismal year was avoiding serious injury when his machine caught fire at Sachsenring. Yet Edwards, known in all motorcycle paddocks as a great bike tester, tried to no avail to help lift the struggling team.

2004 saw Edwards riding for Telefonica Movistar Honda, and he achieved his first MotoGP podium position at Donington. Edwards finished the season in fifth overall position.

In 2005, Edwards moved to Gauloises Yamaha factory team as the teammate to the world champion Valentino Rossi. His best result for 2005 was a second position at Laguna Seca, behind compatriot Nicky Hayden. He finished the season fourth overall.

2006

For 2006 Colin Edwards continued riding for the Camel Yamaha factory team onboard the YZR-M1 with teammate and good friend Valentino Rossi in the MotoGP championship. The factory Yamaha team had a troubling start to their racing year with "chatter" problems and tire wear issues.

The factory team built a new chassis for the 2006 spec YZR-M1 to combat the aforementioned problems. Rossi took to the new chassis quickly and rode to victory at his home race of Mugello for the fifth consecutive time since 2001. Edwards didn't have the time to "gel" with the new chassis early in the season, which resulted in him sticking with the older version for the Mugello race. He finished 12th.

At Assen he took the lead at the start, and led until Nicky Hayden passed him on the penultimate lap. He caught back up to his countryman on the last lap, and managed to pass him a few corners from the end. When Hayden attempted to pass him again in the final chicane, Edwards ran across the AstroTurf and lost control of his bike, which briefly continued on without him. He remounted to finish 13th. Hayden, who ran across the gravel on the final chicane himself, managed to keep control of his bike and won the race. At his home race, the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix, Edwards finished ninth suffering tire problems in the scorching heat like his teammate Valentino Rossi. At Estoril he qualified second and finished fourth in one of his most competitive showings of the season.

2007

2007 brought great prospects early on. Colin entered his second of a two year deal with Yamaha factory team, now known as Fiat Yamaha riding the new Yamaha YZR-M1 800cc. Yet after starting second on the grid in Istanbul, a first lap crash caused by Olivier Jacque took him out. At Le Mans Colin took pole position, but made a slow start and gambled on switching to wet tyres in damp conditions. He did this too early, and by the time it was wet enough his tyres had shredded, forcing him to pit again and finish at the back of the field.

Fiat Yamaha was having problems with the M1 and the Michelin tires, Edwards along with teammate Valentino Rossi both struggled to find competitive set up nearly the entire season to run up front. Edwards best result of the season was 2nd (equaling his career best in MotoGP) at the wet British Grand Prix at Donington Park.

2008

For the 2008 season, Colin Edwards continued in MotoGP, this time for the satellite Tech 3 Yamaha team alongside fellow Superbike World Champion James Toseland. A series of solid performances left him 5th in the overall standings after nine rounds, never qualifying lower than 6th on the grid and finishing on the podium twice. After qualifying 6th for round 9 at Assen, he was delayed by Rossi's early crash and was in next to last place at the end of the first lap (in front of only Rossi, who was able to rejoin the race), however he then fought back to snatch 3rd from Nicky Hayden at the final corner after Hayden ran out of fuel, gaining a measure of revenge for the 2006 race at the track. Colin Edwards results started to suffer after a crash in Germany. In the next four races Edwards failed to break the top ten and his best result since the podium at Assen was a sixth place at the final round of the season at Valencia.

Edwards confirmed that he had signed for Tech 3 for yet another season. "It is no secret that I had agreed with Yamaha to finish my MotoGP career at the end of 2008 and continue my racing career with them in America, but as soon as I began working with the Tech 3 team I instantly formed a great relationship with my guys."Therefore, Edwards will once again be riding for Tech 3 Yamaha in 2009 as he searches for his first MotoGP victory.

2009

Edwards once again demonstrated consistent form in the 2009 MotoGP season, establishing himself as the strongest satellite rider in the championship. He secured a second place finish in the British Grand Prix at Donington Park.

After being caught in a crash at the San Marino Grand Prix, Edwards directed typically outspoken criticism towards Alex de Angelis, claiming: "We are in Italy and occasionally you have to deal with an Italian rider who wants to be a hero and today that was De Angelis. De Angelis is the guy who needed to be wearing Valentino’s donkey helmet." (in reference to a special edition helmet being worn by Valentino Rossi .

2010

On October 1 2009 Edwards announced that he had signed a one-year contract extension that would see him ride for Tech 3 Yamaha in the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. His teammate will be fellow American Ben Spies.

Suzuka 8 Hours

In 1996, Edwards teamed with Noriyuki Haga to claim victory in the Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race riding a Yamaha, his first international victory. Edwards won the 8 Hours two more times: in 2001 with Valentino Rossi, and in 2002 with the late Daijiro Kato, both times with Honda.

Other racing activities

Edwards has twice represented the United States in the Michelin Race of Champions Nation's Cup, first in 2000 and again in 2002 when the US team won the event. The competition involves a national team that includes an automobile racer, a rally/off-road driver and a motorcycle racer. The 2002 US team included former off-road racer and NASCAR rookie Jimmie Johnson as the rally driver, and four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon in the automobile category.

Personal information

He is married to Alyssia. They have a four-year-old daughter, Gracie Kayte, and a son, Hayes, who was born in December, 2005. The family lives in Conroe, Texas. Colin enjoys golf, snowboarding, and Motocross in his spare time. His height is officially recorded as 179 cm, and his weight as 66 kg.

Career statistics

By season

Seas	Class	Moto	Team	Race	Win	Pod	Pole	FLap	Pts	Plcd	WCh
2003	MotoGP	Aprilia RS3 Cube	Aprilia	16	0	0	0	0	62	13th	-
2004	MotoGP	Honda RC211V	Gresini Racing	16	0	2	0	2	157	5th	-
2005	MotoGP	Yamaha YZR-M1	Yamaha-YMR	17	0	3	0	1	179	4th	-
2006	MotoGP	Yamaha YZR-M1	Yamaha-YMR	17	0	1	0	0	124	7th	-
2007	MotoGP	Yamaha YZR-M1	Yamaha-YMR	18	0	2	2	0	124	9th	-
2008	MotoGP	Yamaha YZR-M1	Tech 3	18	0	2	1	0	144	7th	-
2009	MotoGP	Yamaha YZR-M1	Tech 3	17	0	1	0	1	161	5th	-
Total				119	0	11	3	4	951		0

• * Season in progress.

By class

Class	Seas	1st GP	1st Pod	1st Win	Race	Win	Pod	Pole	FLap	Pts	WCh
MotoGP	2003-Present	2003 Japan	2004 Britain	N/A	119	0	11	3	4	951	0
Total	2003-Present				119	0	11	3	4	951	0

Races by year

() (Races in bold indicate pole position)

Year	Class	Bike	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Pos	Pts
2003	MotoGP	Aprilia	JPN 6	RSA Ret	SPA 14	FRA 10	ITA 9	CAT Ret	NED 7	GBR 10	GER 14	CZE 12	POR 14	BRA 13	PAC 17	MAL 13	AUS 16	VAL 8			13th	62
2004	MotoGP	Honda	RSA 7	SPA 7	FRA 5	ITA 12	CAT 5	NED 6	BRA 6	GER 5	GBR 2	CZE 7	POR 9	JPN Ret	QAT 2	MAL 11	AUS 4	VAL 8			5th	157
2005	MotoGP	Yamaha	SPA 9	POR 6	CHN 8	FRA 3	ITA 9	CAT 7	NED 3	USA 2	GBR 4	GER 8	CZE 7	JPN 6	MAL 10	QAT 4	AUS 6	TUR 7	VAL 8		4th	179
2006	MotoGP	Yamaha	SPA 11	QAT 9	TUR 9	CHN 3	FRA 6	ITA 12	CAT 5	NED 13	GBR 6	GER 12	USA 9	CZE 10	MAL 10	AUS Ret	JPN 8	POR 4	VAL 9		7th	124
2007	MotoGP	Yamaha	QAT 6	SPA 3	TUR Ret	CHN 11	FRA 12	ITA 12	CAT 10	GBR 2	NED 6	GER 4	USA 11	CZE Ret	RSM 9	POR 10	JPN 14	AUS 9	MAL 10	VAL 13	9th	124
2008	MotoGP	Yamaha	QAT 7	SPA Ret	POR 4	CHN 7	FRA 3	ITA 5	CAT 5	GBR 4	NED 3	GER Ret	USA 14	CZE 14	SMR 10	INP 15	JPN 7	AUS 8	MAL 8	VAL 6	7th	144
2009	MotoGP	Yamaha	QAT 4	JPN 12	SPA 7	FRA 7	ITA 6	CAT 7	NED 4	USA 7	GER 9	GBR 2	CZE 7	IND 5	SMR Ret	POR 5	AUS 5	MAL 13	VAL 4		5th	161

References

External links

• ceracing.com Official website
• Colin Edwards - MotoGP Rider Bios at Motorcycle-USA