Fiorani: Nakano best solution for Gresini

Team boss Fausto Gresini said last weekend he had talked to Biaggi about eventually teaming up the Roman rider with new signing Alex de Angelis next year.

Fiorani, who was Biaggi's team boss at Repsol Honda in 2005 before the squad and the rider parted ways in a reportedly bitter manner, was later quoted as saying that he saw no reason why the rider could not join one of Honda's teams.

But today the manager said that he reckoned the approach between the two parties did not have any real substance behind it.

"Since the beginning, this contact between Gresini and Biaggi looked to me to be more for appearance's sake than a real will to take it forwards," Fiorani told autosport.com.

Asked if Gresini mentioned Biaggi in order to attract sponsors, Fiorani replied: "I'm not saying that. I'm saying it was more like some sort of curiosity from both sides to know what the other side was doing, but I never saw it as something real."

Fiorani also denied having said that the reason why Biaggi could return to Honda is because the people who worked with him while he was there have left.

The Italian manager said that is not true, and clarified that he had never witnessed heated rows with Biaggi but only technical discussions, and some of the people who were at HRC then have left so they can't be contacted anymore to express their views on the matter.

Fiorani then explained that after having spent this year in Superbikes, Biaggi could have trouble finding his feet back in MotoGP if he were to make a return, so Nakano was a better option for the team.

"After a year in Superbikes, if Biaggi returned to Honda it would have been possible he was not able to find again his feeling with the bike anymore," Fiorani said. "So the best solution was probably to hire Nakano, as it was suggested in the press conference by (HRC director Kosuke) Yasutake."

The 30-year-old Japanese rider comes from a disappointing year with the Konica Minolta Team in which he scored only 45 points and three tenth places as best result.

Fiorani however defended the decision, explaining that while Honda may like to retain a Japanese rider, the evolution of the bike could be improved thanks to having a rider speaking the same language as the bike constructor.

"Nakano has always been a quick rider, and he has always been well received by Honda," said Fiorani. "Certainly a Japanese rider works well in a team with a Japanese constructor, because he has the advantage of relaying very quickly experiences and be the link, thanks to the language, in helping the team setting up the bike.

"For an experienced team like Gresini, to have a Japanese rider is extremely important, because it greatly speeds up the evolution of the bike.

"So besides the fact that Honda may like to have a Japanese rider, it's a great advantage for Gresini as it will make the evolution of the bike easier and faster."