Valentino Rossi recalls that he was “immediate” on the F1 grid, and even his mother wanted to challenge F1, but eventually decided to stay in two wheels.
Last year, Valentino Rossi put an end to his 26-year MotoGP career. He has nine world champions, 115 wins and 235 podiums in his career.
But Valentino Rossi’s MotoGP career was about to end when Ferrari and F1 were knocked over a decade ago.
“It was a very big moment in my life,” Valentino Rossi told In Depth With Graham Bensinger.
“Stefano Domenicali called me,’Why don’t you try our machine? There’s a truck in Philorano. It’s fun, fast, and has a hairpin.’ I said’OK’and we organized it. did”
“We were trying to keep it a secret, so we arrived secretly the day before, but that wasn’t the end.”
Following a private test with Ferrari F1, another test was conducted in Valencia. Valentino Rossi confronted 14 regular F1 drivers.
Valentino Rossi didn’t go as planned on the first day, and after only 10 corners on a damp road, he spun into the gravel, but on the second day he was more successful.
Valentino Rossi finished ninth overall, and his fastest lap time was only 0.7 seconds behind Michael Schumacher’s best time.
Valentino Rossi said he was “very close” to joining the F1 grid.
“In 2006, I did a realistic test with a real driver in Valencia. It was a good test and I was pretty fast.”
“But when I got home, I remember deciding to stay in MotoGP.”
Valentino Rossi explains why, “I had a plan for F1, but it wasn’t Ferrari right away.”
“I was trying to get some experience starting with a small team. If I were fast enough, I would have arrived at Ferrari, but there were a lot of question marks.”
“I was feeling a lot of pressure from my side.’Are you going to four wheels?'” Are you going to Ferrari?’. That was a big deal. “
“When I explained and tried to ask for help to make a decision, everyone said,’No, no, you should go to F1, for example, my mother.”
“I thought I had to decide for myself, and in my heart I thought I should stay in MotoGP.”
In 2022, Valentino Rossi will turn to four-wheelers and take part in the Audi R8 LMS of Belgium’s WRT (W Racing Team), which is competing for the top position in the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Series (GTWCE).
Category: Category: F1 / Valentino Rossi