Pol to stay at Yamaha

Yamaha has extended the contract with MotoGP rider Pol Espargaró for another year, taking the partnership into the 2016 MotoGP season. The 24-year-old will continue his career with the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team aboard the Yamaha YZR-M1.

Espargaró joined the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team for his rookie season in the premier class in 2014, following his championship victory in the Moto2 class the year before. He was sixth in the championship to claim the accolade of 'Rookie of the Year' as well as 'Top Satellite MotoGP Rider'.

Espargarò currently stands ninth in the 2015 championship.

In addition to the MotoGP program Espargarò recently teamed up with MotoGP teammate Bradley Smith and Katsuyuki Nakasuga to win the Suzuka 8 Hour world endurance race. It was Yamaha's fifth victory in the prestigious event.

"I'm happy because renewing my contract with a factory like Yamaha is always going to be fantastic. Yamaha gave me the opportunity to make my debut in MotoGP and together, I think we had a really good first season.

"This year we are working hard to improve our results that have not been as strong as we would have liked at this point of the year. However, next season there will be some important changes in the category, such as the alterations to the technical regulations and especially, the changing of the tyre supplier.

"From my point of view, the less you change with regards to the team and the bike, the easier it will be to adapt to all of this. Despite some tricky moments this year, I know the bike and I know I can continue to work well together with Yamaha and Tech3 in order to achieve our goals."

It's still unclear whether Smith will continue as Espargaro's teammate in 2016.