Tag: Valentino Rossi

Valencia, Spain, 14^th November, 2021: Thanks to Martin Raines and nick-harris.co.uk, here’s a long list of stats about The Doctor’s phenomenal career in Grand Prix racing.

Thanks to Martin Raines and nick-harris.co.uk, here are a whole host of facts, stats and trivia surrounding Valentino Rossi’s wonderful career.

– Rossi and Phil Read are the only riders to win world titles in the 125, 250 and 500cc classes. (Note: Marc Marquez has won titles in 125cc, Moto2™ and MotoGP™)

– Valentino Rossi is the only rider to have won World Championships in four classes: 125, 250, 500 and MotoGP™.

– Rossi and Giacomo Agostini are the only two riders to have won premier class titles on both two-stoke and four-stroke machinery.

– His win at the 2004 season-opening GP in South Africa made him the first rider to take back-to-back premier class victories on different makes of bike.

– In 2004 he became only the second rider to win back-to-back premier class titles on different makes of machinery.  Eddie Lawson was the first, winning on a Yamaha in 1988 and a Honda in 1989.

– He holds the record for successive premier class podiums, scoring 23 successive top-three results from the Portuguese GP in 2002 to the South Africa GP in 2004.

– Rossi had the honour of scoring the 500th victory for Honda when he won the Japanese 500cc GP in April 2001.

– Rossi has won GP races on seven different motorcycles: 125cc Aprilia, 250cc Aprilia, 500cc Honda, 990cc Honda, 990cc Yamaha, 800cc Yamaha and 1000cc Yamaha.

– His eleven wins in 2005 is the highest number of premier class victories in a single season by a Yamaha rider

– He is the only rider to win five or more successive premier class races on a Yamaha.

– He is the only rider in history to have won five or more successive races on two different makes of bike (Yamaha and Honda).

– He is Yamaha’s most successful rider of all time with 56 race victories on their bikes.

– His 89 race victories in the premier class are more than any other rider in the history of Grand Prix racing (second on this list is Giacomo Agostini with 68 premier-class wins).

– He has won 115 GP races across the three classes. Only Giacomo Agostini with 122 wins has stood on the top step of the podium more in Grand Prix racing.

– Valentino Rossi’s third place finish at Jerez in 2020 was the 199th time he has stood on the podium in the premier-class, more than any other rider (second on this list is Jorge Lorenzo with 114 premier-class podiums).

– He has been on the podium 235 times across all classes, which is more than any other rider in the history of Grand Prix racing (second on this list is Giacomo Agostini with 159 Grand Prix podiums).

– The Valencia GP will be Rossi’s 432nd Grand Prix start. This means that he has taken part in 44.4% of all Grand Prix events that have taken place since the world championship series began in 1949. (The rider with second most GP starts is Andrea Dovizioso with 332 by the end of 2021).

– Rossi’s final total of premier class GP starts will be 372 including the race in Valencia; this is more than any other rider (second in the list is Alex Barros with 245 premier class GP starts).

– Rossi has the longest winning career in the premier class of GP racing, with his latest win at the Dutch TT in 2017 coming 16 years 351 days after his first 500cc GP win at Donington in 2000 (the rider with second longest winning career in the premier class is Alex Barros – 11 years 204 days).

– He also has the longest winning GP career across all classes; 20 years 311 days between his first GP victory in the 125cc class at Brno in 1997 and his last GP win at Assen in 2017 (second in this regard is Loris Capirossi with a GP winning career of 17 years 49 days).

– During his career Rossi has competed at 38 different Grand Prix circuits.

– Of these 38 circuits, he has taken at least one GP win at 29 of the circuits.  No other rider in the history of motorcycle Grand Prix racing has won at as many different circuits as Rossi.

– The circuits at which Rossi has had most GP wins are Catalunya and Assen where he has won ten times at each of these two circuits.

– In the premier class Rossi has competed at 29 different circuits.

– He has won in the premier class at 23 of these 29 circuits.

– The circuit where Rossi has had most premier class wins is Assen, with eight.

– The circuit at which Rossi has made most Grand Prix appearances is Jerez, where he has made  27 GP starts across the three classes, including 23 in the premier class.

– During his Grand Prix career Rossi has shared the podium with 55 different riders. The rider he has stood on the podium with most often is Jorge Lorenzo – 53 times.

– In the premier class Rossi has shared the podium with 38 different riders.

– The last time that Rossi shared a podium with a rider older than himself was at the 2008 Czech Grand Prix, that rider being Loris Capirossi.

– With Valencia being Valentino Rossi’s last event it will very likely be the last time that a rider born in the 1970s will start a Grand Prix race.

– There are three riders Rossi has shared a premier class podium with without standing on a higher step: Alex Rins, Fabio Quartararo and Stefan Bradl.

The legendary Valentino Rossi’s Final Race and all other action from MotoGP Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana Main Race will
LIVE on EUROSPORT and EUROSPORT HD from 15:15 Hrs (03:15pm IST) onwards on Sunday, 14^th November, 2021. Eurosport channel can now be streamed on the discovery+ app. MogoGP will be live from 5.30pm, watch out for #46Vale

Valencia (Spain), 12 Nov 2021: Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few days, you’ll be acutely aware that a certain Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) is calling it a day. The legendary Italian will say his final goodbye to an adoring audience at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana and naturally, he was the name on everybody’s lips at the pre-event Press Conference on Thursday evening.

Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team), Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar), Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) and Danilo Petrucci (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing) were in attendance, and they were all keen to pay tribute to an icon of the sport.

“I remember growing up watching that yellow bike winning everywhere, and the way he celebrated victories, I remember that. I watched him and thought, this guy is my idol! It’s been a pleasure to ride with him,” Joan Mir said leading the platitudes.

The Mallorcan’s sentiment was echoed, Quartararo admitting that Rossi inspired the Frenchman as a child while VR46 Academy graduate Bagnaia believes he is lucky just to have raced alongside his mentor. As for Alex Marquez, younger brother of Rossi’s famed Honda rival Marc, he couldn’t help but congratulate the Doctor on an incredible career despite actively rooting against him when growing up.

“I remember the battles with Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa. I’m a Pedrosa fan and was always pushing for Dani! I remember the battles in Catalunya when I was a kid. It was an honour to share the track with a legend.”

The LCR Honda rider went on to mention that, inevitably, the end always arrives but life will go on. Speaking about Rossi, but it was also relevant for another Italian who sitting just a couple of seats away as Danilo Petrucci will hang up the MotoGP™ leathers after the action in Valencia.

Petrux is set to take on new challenges further afield in 2022 with the Dakar Rally set to be the focus of his attention after ten seasons of premier class racing, which included two MotoGP™ victories and eight further podium finishes. It’s been a hell of a journey for the Italian, and one he has been incredibly thankful for.

“Ten years ago, nobody knew me, but it’s been a long way to go and I really had a lot of fun. Since last year I started struggling and that made me think. Thanks to KTM I have a new opportunity. Here (in MotoGP™) I found some problems with my weight and my size. I’m proud to have fought against some special riders.”

Before either Rossi or Petrucci can bow out from the show, they still have one last dance to do. Circuito de Ricardo Tormo sets the stage for the season finale, with a strong performance to end 2021 on a high the general consensus among riders.

World Champion Quartararo won’t break the 300 point barrier this season after a fall last time out, and is keen to make amends in Valencia, targeting a return to the front row after missing out in consecutive Grand Prix.

“To be honest, qualifying has been the key, not for pole position, but to be on the front row 14 times, I think. It helps a lot for the race when you start P3, P2, P1, it’s totally different. I struggled a lot in Portugal when I started in P7. Of course, it is something, the last races I haven’t been great, but I want to focus on that during this race.”

Indeed qualifying seems to be the name of the game for Joan Mir also, with the Suzuki rider keen to show his Portimao performance wasn’t a flash in the pan and that the GSX-RR can become a front row regular.

“I’ll be glad to know if the bike works well on this track. Hopefully yes, and we can enjoy the weekend, and this is the key in the end. In Portimao, we started from FP1 with a good base with the bike, I was able to be competitive and then session by session I was more competitive and feeling better with the bike. That’s what we’ll try find here, that feeling with the bike and then improve session by session. It will be important to understand the qualifying in Portimao was only in Portimao, or if we can do it in different places.”

For Miller and Marquez, it’s about continuing the good work from the Algarve GP, but Bagnaia is out to snap a streak of poor Valencia form. The Italian has only once recorded a top 10 finish, back in his rookie Moto2™ year and is aiming to change that record while in red hot form.

“I never did a podium or finished a race here. I’d like to continue this work we are doing, that is being a great job. I’d like to do a weekend like the one in Portimao. I’d like to be very competitive here at a track where last year was a disaster. Even in the second race and in 2019, when I had a highside. Yes, I’d like to be competitive and fast.”

The MotoGP™ season closer returns to its traditional home in Valencia for the first time since 2019, and it promises to be as thrilling on the track as it will be emotional off of it.

Action from  MotoGP Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana Qualifying Race will be
LIVE on EUROSPORT and EUROSPORT HD from 17:00 Hrs (05:00 pmIST) onwards on Saturday, 13^th November, 2021. Eurosport channel can now be streamed on the discovery+ app.

Pre-Event Press Conference kicks off the Gran Premio Michelin® de Aragon, Rossi to miss the race weekend

Aragon, 14 October 2020: Ahead of the Gran Premio Michelin® de Aragon, Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) was joined by the man still just behind him, Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar), as well as Le Mans podium finisher and home hero Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), French GP winner Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team), first time rostrum finisher Alex Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) and Moto3™ Championship leader Albert Arenas (Solunion Aspar Team Moto3), newly signed up for Moto2™ next year, to talk about the race weekend ahead.

Here are the key quotes from those present, with Quartararo up first and most starting by debriefing a little Le Mans…

FABIO QUARTARARO: “The Saturday was really good because we had great pace in FP3 and FP4, even in qualifying we went one second quicker than in FP3 but unfortunately it started raining just before the start. I was a little nervous because in FP1 I didn’t feel great with the bike, we went on track with a totally different bike than in FP1 without trying any settings. So we kind of made a bet, it was great. We struggled to warm up the rear tyre to have great confidence but in general we didn’t have a bad race in these conditions. For our first race we learned a lot, the team and me, to where we can improve on the bike. I’m quite happy about the race, of course I wanted the dry conditions but in the end in a Championship, you have these kind of conditions so I can be happy about my race.  

“I expect better here than last year because I think we have great potential. In this crazy year, anything can happen. I feel confident, I’m feeling great on the bike, feeling strong so I will do the best I can to be as fast as possible to make the best results in these two weekends at Aragon.”

JOAN MIR: “It was not the best weekend that we could have hoped for but in the end, it wasn’t so bad. Honestly, during the weekend I never had a good feeling with the bike. I was never competitive enough. Then on Sunday the first laps I was not able to steer the bike, it was really difficult, but then I got a good pace and was able to catch many riders in front and it was the first lesson in wet conditions so I think we passed the test because of the pace, but the position was not the best one. It was funny to be fighting on the last laps with Fabio and Maverick, but you know, it was a GP we can forget. We passed Le Mans and now we start again.

“I think that it can be a good weekend for us here. This track, I remember last year we were quite competitive during the weekend, we just missed the first laps of the race we had some problems, but I feel great and this could be a good track for us also, let’s see. This year you never know till the first day, but I feel it can be a great weekend.”

POL ESPARGARO: “It’s been a good weekend last weekend, Le Mans always brings good results to me in the lower categories and in MotoGP in past years so it was pretty crazy, but we took precious points from that race. We come to Aragon where in the past I have also been quite good, I performed well in 125 and won in Moto2 as well and in MotoGP, also not so bad. But in the last two years I suffered injuries here and I could race. But it’s a racetrack that I like to race, especially when the grandstands are full when they come to support the Spanish riders. I really enjoy riding here, I’m looking forward to jumping back on the bike after the results Le Mans. As the weather changes so much with the cold temperatures and the wind is quite strong, let’s see how we can adapt with the tyres first and then see our performance during the weekend.  

“This year has been unpredictable for all of us, but KTM even more. Our previous years were not as good as this year for sure and we are ding results that we don’t expect. We understand why they’re coming but not 100% because this year the tyres are changing a lot and also the conditions of the track. So, we are trying to manage where the level of our bike is because it’s performing much better than what we expect. Hopefully this weekend will be one of the weekends where we fight for something great, but we need to wait, especially with the front tyre performance. With the cold conditions, I think we can play with the medium tyre which is amazing for us and we can take profit but if we need to play with the soft one, maybe we will miss some performance on the front and not take full profit from our bike. Let’s see how the weekend starts, I really hope for a good weekend, if we do a good result here and in the second Aragon then why not fight for something interesting at the end of the year.”

DANILO PETRUCCI: “Last Sunday’s result was a big relief for me. After one year without finishing in the Top 5 it was very nice to win again especially at a track that I like. I always like Le Mans but this year I started to feel better in Barcelona with the bike. The only test we did in Misano, we tried some different things with the bike and some things worked and we were able to improve our set up. For sure I was not happy when I saw the rain on the grid because I could fight for the podium in dry conditions because I felt really good but I said ok it is the same for everyone and then for sure the track was very different, but I think the experience I have in MotoGP made a big difference. Yeah, I can just continue like this with this good feeling and get another good result before the end of my adventure with Ducati but yeah really nice to get this feeling again. 

“We found a good balance on the bike and I think it will work here too, but first we have to understand the conditions of the track and especially if the tyres are well good for us or we have to understand which is the best tyre for us because Aragon has always been tricky with the weather conditions because it can be very cold in the morning and hot in the afternoon but I think this year we will see a lot of cold. Hopefully the weather will stop tomorrow because we always suffer a bit with the wind, but I think the important thing is to have a good approach and finally I have the good feeling coming into races and riding the bike and for sure I’m feeling happier than before.”

ALEX MARQUEZ: “In the end it’s a good result for us, really important for sure. In the end it’s wet ok but it’s difficult for everyone and you need to adapt. I felt great on the bike so I took the opportunity and I did my best during all the laps because it wasn’t easy but in the end it’s a wet podium, so it doesn’t mean nothing important for me. It’s true that from Misano 2 we have a better feeling, so this podium gives more motivation to keep working and it’s so important for the team. But you know, we are coming in a better way and also in the warm up I was quite fast and consistent so I was happy for that. this gives us more motivation to keep working and keep improving day by day. This is a track that the Honda has gone well at in the past, it’s a track that I like so I will try to make two GPs in a good way and improve day by day.

“Qualifying we are still struggling quite a lot. I think it’s the key because on Sunday the pace isn’t bad, but we are losing a lot of time in the first laps compared to the leader. We need to keep improving and keep working, in Le Mans it’s true that in quali I did a step but then I missed the second run because I wasn’t able to improve. But we are coming, we are in a good way to keep working and improving from now until the end of the season.  

ALBERT ARENAS: “After some difficult races after some bad luck and mistakes, I could be competitive again and get some points in France just before three races in a row was really good and now, we are so motivated. The feeling was good all weekend, wet and dry, we came here with a lot of power and motivation.

“I’m really happy to finally move on to Moto2, I think it came at the best moment, I feel ready, I was eager to jump to Moto2 because I spent many years in Moto3 but now the time has arrived, and I feel 100% ready. To continue with the Aspar team really good for me, I know them, they know me, it’s amazing. Now I can focus 100% on the Championship as one objective is done and now, we are going. For the second one 

That’s all she wrote on Thursday in Aragon! Tune in for FP1 at 9:55 (GMT +2) on Friday, and remember we’re back to ‘normal’ as the lights go out for the race at 14:00 (GMT +2).

Montmelo (Spain), 26 Sept 2020: Yamaha Motor Company Limited is pleased to announce that it has signed a one-year renewal agreement with Grand Prix racing legend Valentino Rossi. Fans all over the world will be delighted to know that the nine-time World Champion will be participating in the 2021 MotoGP World Championship as a fully supported Factory Yamaha rider for the PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team.

Due to the global Covid-19 outbreak, Rossi was obliged to state his future intention to continue as a MotoGP rider before competing in a single 2020 MotoGP race. However, having completed seven GP weekends since then, the 41-year-old is certain that he made the right decision. He reunited with his beloved YZR-M1 showing competitive pace and has a lot of fight left in him.

The Yamaha Factory Racing MotoGP Team wants to thank Rossi for his continuous contribution and effort. Currently competing in their 15th MotoGP season together, to date they have secured 4 world titles, 142 podiums, 56 victories, and competed in 250 races.

Rossi can be assured of the team‘s full support for the remainder of the 2020 championship. Everyone is fully focused on completing this season on a high note, as the team continues to push for the three World Championship titles.