American Tom 'House' Houseworth has come to terms with Yamaha's World Superbike team and will be the crewchief of the Ben Spies side of the Yamaha WSBK team in '09. Houseworth has worked with Spies since the Texan rider was a rookie; the pair have an impressive list of successes, including three AMA Superbike titles.

While having Houseworth move to World Superbike with Spies may seem like a trivial point, it's not. An American rider's first seasons abroad can be rough while he acclimates to the travel schedule and different surroundings. Having a familiar and friendly face to turn to and work with can't hurt.

It's well-known that then Honda mechanic Dan Fahie wanted to join his rider, Nick Hayden, when Hayden went to MotoGP but HRC would not allow it. Fahie now is the crewchief of the Kawasaki US Superbike effort.

Houseworth worked with Spies at the recent Portugal test but had not yet signed a contract to join the Yamaha team. He and Yoshimura Suzuki describe Houseworth's departure as amicable.

Some may recall that this is not the first time Houseworth will have tuned a Yamaha Superbike. Tom was an integral part of Yamaha's U.S. Superbike effort in the 90s and early 2000s, where he wrenched for the likes of Tom Kipp, Rich Oliver, Anthony Gobert, Jamie Hacking and others.