Tech 3 riders Cal Crutchlow and Andrea Dovizioso upbeat despite crashing during French Grand Prix

As has been the case for much of the season the pair proved almost inseparable, locked in battle not only with each other but also with Ducati's Valentino Rossi and Honda's Casey Stoner during an early four-way fight for second.

As the race progressed both found it harder to stay with Rossi however, and in trying to stick on the Italian's tail both fell - Crutchlow 10 laps from the finish and Dovizioso seven laps later.

Dovizioso said the conditions meant that mistakes were easy to make, and that despite his fall he could still take comfort from his race pace.

"Although the conditions were far from ideal, it was a fantastic race and I really enjoyed it," he said. It was easy to make a mistake on such a wet track but I am really satisfied that I could make such a high pace.

"The battle with Cal and Valentino was hard but a lot of fun and it is a shame that I crashed while I still had a very good chance of my first podium for Tech 3 and Yamaha.

"The last 12 laps my front tyre kept closing but Valentino couldn't escape from me and I could see we were catching Casey. I knew that I was pushing right on the limit with the tyres but I wanted to try and go with Valentino.

"It is a pity to crash but I'm really happy with my feeling with the Yamaha now. I was fast all weekend in the wet and dry and my team did a great job, so we can look forward to the next races with a lot of confidence."

Crutchlow echoed Dovizioso's sentiments, saying fighting for the podium provided some form of consolation for his crash.

"I'm not happy to have crashed while I was fighting for the podium, but the consolation is that at least I was battling for the top three again. Being quickest in the warm-up this morning meant I was confident going into the race but I wasn't really aggressive at the start," he said.

"I seemed to miss out on a bit of speed on the straight compared to [Rossi and Dovizioso, which] meant I had to make up all my time in the corners. It was a shame I crashed because I was fighting with Valentino and he finished second.

"There was a chance of the podium today but at least I was there and I lost so much time after the crash that to still finish eighth is a bonus really."

Both riders were able to return to the circuit following their crashes and finished seventh and eighth respectively, Dovizioso leading Crutchlow home.