The End of an Era: Hervé Poncharal’s Tech3 Legacy over 36 Years of Thrills

The Valencia Grand Prix was the last for Hervé Poncharal as team principal of his Tech3 Racing. The Bormes-les-Mimosas squad, founded in November 1989 together with engineer Guy Coulon, officially passes into the hands of Guenther Steiner after over three decades of emotions. The official start came in 1990, when the categories were still 250cc and 500cc, later becoming Moto2 and MotoGP, to which Moto3 was added, along with a brief MotoE chapter. The figure

"How do I feel? It’s a great emotion," Hervé Poncharal admitted in Valencia to the microphones of TNT Sports. "When everyone comes to tell you what you’ve given them, how much they believed in our work… Sure, it’s a bit sad, but I don’t regret anything. I met incredible people and fulfilled my dreams; it was more than I expected. But everything has an end, nothing lasts forever, and this is the moment." And now? "I’ll rest, then I’ll think about what to do with my life. I still have many projects," Poncharal replied.

There’s a never-ending list of riders who passed through this team in the Poncharal era, leaving their mark. Shall we name a few? Olivier Jacque, 250cc world champion in 2000, the team’s only world champion. Shin’ya Nakano, Alex Barros, Marco Melandri, Toni Elias, Ruben Xaus, Sylvain Guintoli, Norifumi Abe, Colin Edwards, James Toseland, Raffaele De Rosa, Mike Di Meglio, Xavier Simeon, Cal Crutchlow, Andrea Dovizioso, Johann Zarco, Iker Lecuona, Remy Gardner, Danilo Petrucci, Raul Fernandez, Marco Bezzecchi, Yamaha test rider Augusto Fernandez and KTM test rider Pol Espargaro... Miguel Oliveira, who delivered the team’s only two wins in MotoGP. Up to this year’s youngsters, Valentin Perrone and Jacob Roulstone in Moto3, plus Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales in MotoGP. And we’ve only mentioned a few! Even the most recent MotoE champions, Hector Garzo and Alessandro Zaccone, passed through Tech3.

A very long story that came to an end this year. First the handover between Hervé Poncharal and Lucio Cecchinello for the role of IRTA reference, then came the official announcement of the team’s sale. A few years ago, Guy Coulon took on a reduced role—an eccentric engineer but a true engine wizard—by his own choice, and now the baton passes to the ex-Formula 1 figure. There have been many emotions; we mentioned two: the title with Olivier Jacque in 2000 in the then-250cc, and the two MotoGP victories signed by Miguel Oliveira. There were also tough moments and development phases, like the in-house Mistral 610 during the Moto2 period. The jump to Moto3 alongside MotoGP, with this year’s fine satisfaction brought by rookie Perrone, plus the first podium with KTM in the premier class by Bastianini. And that’s just a hint. The Poncharal era is over; tomorrow begins the Steiner era, inheriting a heavy legacy.