“Changed the sport”: MotoGP bows to Rossi

Before the tenth race of the season, four-time winner Fabio Quartararo comfortably leads the drivers' standings, but the competition has not given up yet. Before the Styrian GP in Spielberg, the entire motorcycle scene once again bowed to motorcycle icon Rossi.

The 42-year-old Italian spoke at a short-notice press conference on Thursday announced his retirement at the end of the season and thus ushered in the second half of the season with a bang after the five-week summer break. This means that one of the most dazzling sports careers in the world will end in Valencia in November and make room for something new. MotoGP is now heading into the post-Valentino Rossi era. It would have continued to tempt him It could have taken a while for Rossi. He confirmed in Spielberg that there was the option of appearing again as a rider in his own MotoGP team in 2022 on a Ducati alongside his half-brother Luca Marini. But changing brands was too risky for just one season.

"But it's true. “I had an official offer from my own team,” joked Rossi in a good mood after the retirement announcement. “It would have been fascinating and we probably wouldn’t have had any problems with the salary negotiations,” added the nine-time world champion with a wink before taking stock. “It was a great time with unforgettable moments” Valentino Rossi After a quarter of a century in the World Championship saddle, this was almost entirely positive for the 115-time GP winner. “It was a great time with unforgettable moments,” explained the 42-year-old and assured that his decision now felt “good”. Rossi wants to say goodbye properly The last time the Yamaha rider was on the podium was in July 2020 in Jerez in third place; he celebrated his last victory in Assen in 2017. “In every sport, the results are what matter in the end. In this respect, I think it is now the right step,” Rossi concluded the chapter. “Unfortunately this will be my last half season. “I want to try to get better results than before,” said the WM-19 player Rossi shaped MotoGP like no other. © ANSA / ETTORE FERRARI / FRR

MotoGP has long since reorganized itself in the years since Rossi's last world title in 2009. Initially Jorge Lorenzo and then especially Marc Marquez took over the helm. The 28-year-old Marquez is now an eight-time world champion himself and has won 89 GPs. 57 of them in MotoGP, where he won the title six times. When Rossi missed his last big World Cup chance against Lorenzo in 2015, Marquez played a significant supporting role. Can there be a successor? However, the massive arm and shoulder injury at the start of the 2020 season set the Spaniard back badly. And even though he won again at the Sachsenring this year after a long break, the long absence of the series champion has made the way up for other drivers. The current world champion is the Spaniard Joan Mir (Suzuki), in the World Championships Quartararo is leading on a Yamaha. And young drivers from the lower classes are constantly pushing their way into the premier two-wheeler class. “Because of him I wanted to ride a motorcycle” Fabio Quartararo on Rossi “He was already world champion twice before I was born,” Quartararo, who was born in 1999, also bowed to Rossi. “It makes me sad that he won’t be there next year. Because of him, I also wanted to ride a motorcycle and asked him several times for autographs,” reported the Frenchman from Nice. “He is the legend of this sport and has had a great career. It is indescribable what it means to me.

World champion Mir made a similar sound. “I feel privileged that I was able to race against him. For me he is the Michael Jordan of MotoGP. It will be difficult to find another Valentino Rossi.” Current World Championship runner-up Johann Zarco (Ducati) said: “Vale has changed racing since the 2000s. If someone had nothing to do with MotoGP, you said their name and everyone knew. There are few comparable people in sport.”

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“Changed the sport”: MotoGP bows to Rossi

With the knowledge that Valentino Rossi's farewell tour has begun in his 26th season as a rider, the Motorcycle World Championship enters the second half of the season on Sunday in Austria. The Italian was showered with praise after his announced retirement.

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