Valentino Rossi prepares to begin his 26th season in Grand Prix racing this weekend, continuing with his beloved Yamaha M1 but this time with a new team and a new team-mate.
Joining the satellite Petronas Yamaha squad alongside VR46 Academy rider and friend, Franky Morbidelli, Rossi is comfortable and confident with his new surroundings after a successful pre-season test.
“Yes, like you said, I change team after a long, long time but I feel good,” Rossi said at the Losail Circuit. “The atmosphere is good, and the tests were not so bad so now we have to see in a real race weekend.
“After testing, I feel quite strong and the balance of the bike is good. I achieved my best-ever lap of the Qatar circuit, which was an important and positive thing to do. I think there are a lot of riders on different bikes that are also strong, but we’re definitely in the pack. Our race pace looks to be good, so I feel like we are ready to start the season this weekend.
In the factory team but also in the Petronas team, everybody gives the maximum to win so anyway you have the pressure. The difference is that I have less people around the bike but for me the atmosphere was good also in the factory team, I feel good also there, it’s not a big change.”
With Morbidelli concluding 2020’s rollercoaster season runner-up in the championship - after a stellar second half, with three wins to his name - and with limited technical changes on the cards for 2021, he is certainly on everyone’s radar as one of the riders to watch going into the new year so how does Rossi feel to be partnering up with his former protégé?
“I’m very happy to have Franco as a teammate, because we have a good friendship” the 41-year-old explained. “We spend a lot of time together in Tavullia for training but also for free time. I think that he is one of the best riders in MotoGP, at this moment, like he demonstrated last year. So, for me, is good, is a great motivation, to try to fight with him.
“On the personal side, I’m happy to have the Franco as a teammate, because we know each other, but in the track is not the best teammate, because he is very, very strong. We know that Franco is fast, but the second half of last year’s championship, I think that Franko was the surprise of MotoGP because he was very strong and he was able to win three races. So it will be hard, will be difficult but, the first look is always for your teammate, your teammate is your first opponent so I hope that we can make some good battles, and that we can fight for the good positions.”
With 25 years in the MotoGP paddock now under his belt, is the excitement and anticipation of a new season wearing thin on the Yamaha stalwart?
“The atmosphere of Thursday of the first race is always the same” said Rossi. “It’s like the first day at school, and it’s always exciting. Also for the pictures all together on the grid, you have the feeling that in some hours, we start, so it’s good.
“To say 26 seasons, is a number that you have to think about, but usually is better to stay focused on the present than on the future. For sure, I change a lot because it’s a long time, and I become older, so you have a different feeling, but at the end, the passion for the motorcycle and for the MotoGP Championship is the same. Also the excitement to exit from the pit for the first time tomorrow will be the same than in the past, so I’m very happy to be here and I will try to give my best to be competitive for this season.”
Remaining as passionate and dedicated to the sport as he ever has, the veteran, it seems, has no plans to leave it as ’26 and done’.
“I hope that this is not the last year but will depend very much on the results for sure.” Rossi concluded.
