With the tranquility of who has assumed that his time has come, face now Valentino rossi which will be his last race as a MotoGP rider. The Italian will leave 26 seasons behind in Valencia in a World Cup that has seen him proclaim himself world champion up to nine times (1 in 125cc, 1 in 250cc, 1 in 500cc and 6 in MotoGP) and in turn, they have given him the opportunity to win 115 races. Only the numbers make him a legend after a life full of successes and celebrations that are already part of history, but the truth is that the figure of The doctor has an added merit because he intensified the value of motorcycling by attracting the eyes of half the world and staining the stands yellow to convert that of the two wheels, in a mass sport.
Valentino dominated like no one else in the 2000s and not even the passage of time has taken away the desire to compete. However, as the pilot himself announced in Spielberg on August 5, although he would have liked to “compete another 25 years, it is not possible”. Since that appointed date, Rossi has had time to get used to the idea of what this next weekend in Valencia will mean for him. He admits not knowing if he will be prepared for what is to come when the checkered flag falls, but he takes his last appearance with ease in a scene that will have him as the protagonist: “Valencia is always a special weekend and it can be a difficult race in different ways, especially since it is always the last test of the year. Although It will be my last race in MotoGP, I feel normal and I think that’s fine. “
The doctor has had nine races since announcing his departure for assimilate the setting that will welcome you at the Ricardo Tormo. To begin with, and continuing its double tribute at Misano, the Valencia GP will start with an exceptional and solo press conference during the day on Thursday scheduled for 4:00 p.m., in honor of the nine-time champion. And from there, Valentino will only have to do what he likes the most: run. His mentality continues to prioritize what will happen on the asphalt, despite what a goodbye like his means. “I hope we have a good time to finish the last race in the top 15 and score some more points “, Rossi highlights about a weekend that, in turn, will help him leave behind its least competitive season since it debuted in 1996.
Decisive numbers
If you don’t remedy it in Cheste, the Petronas pilot will close the year for the first time without having visited a podium in which he made an appearance on 235 occasions. Of the total, 199 are attributed to a queen category in which he celebrated his last triumph at the mythical Assen circuit, in 2017, suffering a drought that was too long for a runner who he has never lost his ambition. Although he acknowledges that “This has been a very long season.” With an eighth as the best result in the race, making an appearance in the points area has been a very complex job that, in turn, has led him to sign a dozen falls that represent the highest number of Valentino since he returned to Yamaha in 2013.
Reality has imposed itself on the mastery of an exemplary rider at the handlebars of the motorcycle, which also went through Ducati and became in champion with Honda (in 2001, 2002 and 2003 before making the jump to Yamaha). But now, at 42 years old, Rossi is up to put the finishing touch to 26 very intense courses within a World Cup that says goodbye to the mythical # 46 on the grid. “Maybe the days after the weekend (in Valencia) be different this year “, Valentino admits as a possibility once he hangs up his helmet, aware that beyond that yearned for tenth title, he has a pending task: “To have the opportunity to say ‘ciao’ to my fans in a good way and thank them for the support “ towards a pilot, who will be “for life.”
