Yamaha Petronas rider Franco Morbidelli will not be there when the MotoGP championship returns over the weekend of 8 August at the Red Bull Ring.  &nbsp;The aim is to be back for Misano  The Malaysian team published a short tweet on Friday morning to update the fans. &quot;Unfortunately Frankie won&rsquo;t be in Austria&quot;, the message reads. &quot;We wish him a speedy recovery and we can&rsquo;t wait to have him back on the bike&quot;.  Following surgery on his left knee, Morbidelli is not yet back to full fitness and needs time to make a full recovery. This is something that Razlan Razali had anticipated in the last few days: &quot;We want to be sure he&rsquo;s 100% before he returns, so we don&rsquo;t expect him to race before Misano&quot;.  We now await news as to the rider who will stand in for #21 during the two upcoming rounds at the Spielberg circuit - with Garrett Gerloff busy with the WorldSBK round at Most, Valentino Rossi could be joined by test rider Cal Crutchlow.  Translated by Heather Watson  MotoGP, Puig: &ldquo;Marquez? He&rsquo;s riding with an arm and a half&rdquo; 

Team Petronas has confirmed that the Italian will not take part in the next Styrian GP as he continues to recover from a left knee injury

MotoGP, Franco Morbidelli still out: no Austria

The Petronas team finished the 2020 season in the best possible way, championship runner-up Franco Morbidelli obviously in great shape aboard the Yamaha M1. But 2021 has failed to get off to a similar start, the situation clear to everyone. The Italo-Brazilian has struggled, his team-mate Valentino Rossi also failing to shine.  In a press release issued by the squad itself, team principal Razlan Razali analyses the first nine races: &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had our highs and lows. It&rsquo;s been hard in MotoGP, particularly after the good results of the first two years, and the fact that Franco Morbidelli finished as runner-up in 2020. The 2021 season hasn&rsquo;t started as we expected&rdquo;.  &nbsp;A closer look at Morbidelli and Rossi  The 26-year old hasn&rsquo;t been able to do well in every race: &ldquo;Franco had problems with the bike during the first race, but then bounced back and scored a first podium at Jerez. Unfortunately he then had the knee problem, which required surgery. This hinders our aims for the rest of the season, but we hope he comes back strong&rdquo;. As for the Doctor, he comments: &ldquo;We saw good pace in qualifying at the start of the season and some improvement in recent races, but we know it&rsquo;s been difficult. We&rsquo;ll continue to support him as much as possible during the second half of the season&rdquo;.  &nbsp;The goals  Looking at 2021 as a whole, as well as the ten races that remain, the Malaysian confirms: &ldquo;We will try to finish top five in every class. In MotoGP we aim to be inside the top three in the independent team category, but we know it will be difficult to make up ground in the second half of the season. In Moto2 and Moto3 we need our riders to be consistent. We have the potential to significantly improve our results&rdquo;.  &nbsp;Morbidelli&rsquo;s physical condition  On 25 June, Morbidelli was in surgery and Razali provides an update as to his condition: &ldquo;Franco is recovering well. We want to be sure he&rsquo;s 100% before he returns, so we don&rsquo;t think he&rsquo;ll race before Misano. He loves that track and knows it well, so that could be a good opportunity for him to return&rdquo;.  &nbsp;Who are the 2022 riders?  As for the riders market opening up in light of Vinales&rsquo; departure, Razali states: &ldquo;We&rsquo;re still awaiting the decision of Valentino Rossi and Yamaha with regard to 2022. In any case, the latest developments definitely open up many possibilities! We&rsquo;re talking with Yamaha and our current MotoGP riders, but we&rsquo;re in no hurry. We don&rsquo;t plan to make any announcements for at least another couple of races&rdquo;.  Translated by Heather Watson  MotoGP, Ciabatti: &ldquo;We have two good opportunities in Austria&quot; 

The Petronas team principal analyses the season so far, sets out the goals and speaks about Morbidelli

MotoGP 2022, Razali: &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll announce our line-up after the races in Austria&rdquo;

        Friday at the Catalunya GP brings an excellent second place finish for Franco Morbidelli, behind Zarco. Despite his Yamaha M1&rsquo;s lack of top speed, it appears Morbido is getting on well with the fast turns at Montmel&oacute;. &ldquo;I can give it my best and exploit my bike&rsquo;s strong points through the fast turns&rdquo;, explains number 21. &ldquo;We started well right from the first laps in FP1 and are already competitive in terms of both the flying lap and our race pace, so it&rsquo;s been a very positive day for us&rdquo;. "There&rsquo;s little grip, it&rsquo;s like being at the ranch"  &ldquo;I got on well with both the harder and the medium tyre, but it&rsquo;s too soon to say which might be the best solution for the race, as both compounds seem to work very well on this kind of track, with its particular asphalt and layout&rdquo;, continues the team Petronas rider. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s very little grip, but that&rsquo;s not a massive problem for me as I can still ride very fast. It&rsquo;s almost like being at the ranch&rdquo;, jokes Franco. &ldquo;For the race I know it will be tough for me, as always, and this is why my crew chief and I are ready to risk using a more aggressive set-up solution. What counts right now is that I&rsquo;m able to have fun in the saddle&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP Catalunya, Martin: &ldquo;The crash? I hit my head so don't remember it&rdquo;       

The team Petronas rider, second on Friday at Montmel&oacute;, doesn&rsquo;t hide his satisfaction. "I&rsquo;m fast despite the lack of grip. I&rsquo;m finally have fun on the bike"

MotoGP Catalunya, Morbidelli: “Ready to risk to stay up front”

The Italian GP is just around the corner and from Friday, the riders will be out at Mugello for free practice ahead of Sunday&#39;s race. Yamaha and Ducati look to be the favourites considering the results in recent races but, of the M1 bikes, might that of Valentino Rossi also be able to fight for the podium?  &nbsp;The most successful at Mugello   Vale has won more Mugello races than anyone. He&rsquo;s competed at this track ever since he was young and knows it like the back of his hand. His most recent strong result dates back to 2018, when he finished third behind Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso. The following year he crashed out and then in 2020 there was no MotoGP in Italy due to Covid-19. So what can we expect from the Doctor this time around? His 2021 season hasn&rsquo;t got off to the best start, an eleventh-place finish his best result to date, scored at Le Mans. If we were feeling pessimistic, we might be inclined to say that things will be no better in Italy, but Rossi might just have an ace up his sleeve.  &nbsp;&ldquo;Mugello is always special&rdquo;   A &lsquo;home&rsquo; race, even if the Misano round is more of a &lsquo;home&rsquo; race for Rossi, always brings extra motivation. There won&rsquo;t be any crowds on site to support Valentino, but if the Petronas rider wants to make up for his recent negative results, this friendly track could be just the place: &ldquo;I felt better with the bike at Le Mans &ndash; he said &ndash; so it was a pity the race was such a complicated one. We hope the weather is more consistent this weekend at Mugello, and that we can confirm the improvements made during testing at Jerez. It&rsquo;s a fantastic track and I have many wonderful memories. It&rsquo;s always special, so I can&rsquo;t wait to get there, although it&rsquo;s a pity there&rsquo;ll be no fans because they are always fantastic and give us so much support. It&rsquo;s great to see them in the grandstand. The Italian GP is something wonderful&rdquo;.  Translated by Heather Watson  MotoGP Italy, Marc Marquez anxious: &ldquo;I know my physical limitations&rdquo; 

Having not made the best start to the 2021 season, the Petronas rider has a golden opportunity to score a good result: &ldquo;I hope to confirm the improvements made during the Jerez test&rdquo;

MotoGP Italy: can Rossi turn things around?

        Valentino Rossi is experiencing the toughest season start he&rsquo;s ever experienced and, three races in, he arrives at Jerez with just four championship points. All scored in the first race, which he finished in twelfth place. Too few if we consider what a great he has been, the nine world titles he possesses, the many achievements he will recount to his grandchildren, and the 200th MotoGP podium he&rsquo;s been chasing since 2020. A track with podium potential  The Andalusian track that is about to host round four of the season is one that has brought Rossi significant success in the past. There has always been good feeling between the two. Of the 27 races the Italian has contended between 1996 and 2020, he has reached the podium on 16 occasions &ndash; nine of which were race wins. His latest podium came just last year, and this is perhaps the most important fact. &nbsp;The number 46 Yamaha was able to cross the line third in last season&rsquo;s Jerez race, the Doctor relishing a feeling that he hadn&rsquo;t experienced since the Austin race in 2019. He has the resources  So Rossi and his team were able to find a way to be competitive last year, but will this be the case this year? It&rsquo;s true that his team has changed, Rossi having moved from the factory squad to the Malaysian Petronas team, but the material he has available is almost the same and he&rsquo;ll have all the data to be able to find the best possible set-up. Definitely a solid base from which to start then, as the Italian attempts to turn his season around and score the kind of results worthy of his role. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP, Biaggi: &ldquo;Marc M&aacute;rquez on the podium already at Jerez&rdquo;       

The Italian scored his last podium at Jerez last season and has done well there over the years, all of which bodes well for the upcoming weekend

MotoGP Spain: Valentino Rossi seeks a comeback

As is the case for every successful sportsperson, Valentino Rossi has entered the down phase of his career. But few expected such a drop in his performance. And we&rsquo;re not just talking about the two recent Qatar weekends, during which he scored just four points, a pittance for a rider who has amassed more than 6300 world championship points.  Even more striking was the fact he finished the Doha GP qualifying in penultimate position, a new low for the Doctor. Any other time he was forced to start from the back row, it was always due to a penalty.  MotoGP, has Rins not learned his lesson after last year?  The data  If we look at the data, things really started to go downhill last November. Up until the French GP on 11th October, his performance had been fairly good. He finished 8th in first practice at Le Mans, then 7th in 3rd practice, 4th in FP4, 10th in qualifying and 12th in both second practice and warm up. He then crashed a few metres into the race, but this is one of the pitfalls of racing, particularly in the wet.  Then on 15 October, after undergoing countless anti-Covid tests since July, he tested positive to the virus, forced to watch the Arag&oacute;n races from his sofa. Back for the European GP, he only rode from Saturday, after leaving his M1 to Garrett Gerloff, called in to replace him. He didn&rsquo;t make too bad a start, 8th in FP3, albeit nine tenths behind team-mate Maverick Vi&ntilde;ales. But it was all an illusion, because in the next session he was 14th, then 18th in qualifying and 19th in warm-up, before failing to finish the race due to an electrical problem.  The drop    If we include that weekend, the first of the two at Valencia, Rossi has completed five races since having coronavirus, for a total of 33 sessions. But in none of these did he finish in the top three, scoring a best of 4th in the Qatar GP qualifying, after receiving a tow from Pecco Bagnaia&rsquo;s Ducati, which was his only top-seven finish. Even if we widen the results to top-ten finishes, there are only five results to speak of. And in three sessions, he&rsquo;s had to settle for 21st place, namely in second practice in Portugal, where only Kallio finished behind him, and in fourth practice and Q1 in the Doha GP, where he preceded only Lorenzo Savadori on the Aprilia.  He&rsquo;s also set 20th on a couple of occasions, in third practice at Portimao ahead of Kallio and the Ducati of Tito Rabat and in the warm-up of the inaugural 2021 race, beating only Jack Miller and Savadori. In addition to this are two 19th places, three 18th places, five 17th places and three 16th place finishes, as well as the already mentiond DNF at the European GP. If every session were to award points to the top 15, as is the case in the race, Rossi would have scored nineteen &ldquo;zeros&rdquo; in 33 outings on track. In the actual races, he&rsquo;s reached the points zone three times, finishing 12th each time, for an average of 2.4 points over the five races.  So far less than the 16 points he scored with just one podium finish at last year&rsquo;s Andalusia GP, a result he then came close to matching with 4th at Misano and two fifth-places at Brno and in Austria. But aside from these race results, Valentino was also performing better across all of a weekend&#39;s sessions during the first three months of last season. In the 63 sessions completed over the first nine GP weekends in 2020, he closed inside the top fifteen on 55 occasions. In addition, he scored just one 20th place and no 21st place finish, and neither was he ever 19th or 18th.  All figures that seem to suggest Valentino is a different person since coronavirus. But knowing his determination and talent, a turnaround seems inevitable, also because, although Rossi claims he&rsquo;s now riding for fun, for the 42-year old, having fun will never just mean taking part.           GP    FP1    FP2    FP3    FP4    QUALIFICHE    WARM    UP    GARA          Europa    2020    nd    nd    8&deg;    14&deg;    18&deg;    19&deg;    ritiro          Valencia    2020    13&deg;    18&deg;    17&deg;    13&deg;    16&deg;    15&deg;    12&deg;          Portogallo    2020    19&deg;    21&deg;    20&deg;    17&deg;    17&deg;    14&deg;    12&deg;          Qatar    2021    9&deg;    9&deg;    16&deg;    17&deg;    4&deg;    20&deg;    12&deg;          Doha    2021    17&deg;    14&deg;    9&deg;    21&deg;    21&deg;    18&deg;    16&deg;        Translated by Heather Watson  MotoGP: black weekend for Pramac, is Zarco&rsquo;s moment of &ldquo;glory&rdquo; already over? 

Since testing positive for coronavirus, Rossi&rsquo;s performance has taken a significant downturn, with only one bright spot - the second row of qualifying in the Qatar GP. Often at a solid level in 2020, the Doctor won&rsquo;t settle for just taking part - will there be a turnaround?

Valentino Rossi, analysing the negative trend

        Having suffered more than expected during the first two races of the season in Qatar, Valentino Rossi and the Petronas team now need to start over at the first European round, taking place at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve in Portim&atilde;o. Number 46 is keen to ride in Portugal: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s always nice when we return to race in Europe, because its all a little easier. Portim&atilde;o is a great track, very difficult but wonderful, unique and with many changes in gradient which make it a lot of fun&rdquo;. &ldquo;The start of the season has been hard and we weren&rsquo;t where we thought we&rsquo;d be, so we need to work hard this weekend to be more competitive. Honestly, I don&rsquo;t know what the problem has been, but I don&rsquo;t think it has to do with my riding style, because all the Yamaha riders ride in a different way and Franco had various problems too&rdquo;, explains the Italian. &ldquo;M&aacute;rquez will be competitive right away&rdquo;  As for the race, Valentino thinks local rider Miguel Oliveira is the favourite: &ldquo;Last year he was so strong with the KTM. He dominated the race and I think he can be very fast again this time, but Miller and Morbidelli will also be dangerous and shouldn&rsquo;t be underestimated&rdquo;. Re Marc M&aacute;rquez&rsquo;s return, Rossi has clear ideas: &ldquo;M&aacute;rquez will probably be competitive right away. I expect a lot from him, because I see he&rsquo;s in great shape, and even if we don&rsquo;t know about his physical endurance, I think he can be quick right from Friday&rdquo;. &ldquo;I think Francesca is right&rdquo;  He finishes by touching on girlfriend Francesca Sofia Novello&rsquo;s comments about the motorcycle racing atmosphere: &ldquo;I liked her interview, because she was very direct, and I think she&rsquo;s right. She spoke about the paddock, but I think we could say similar things about many places, trade fairs for example, not only in the world of motorcycling, but in all places of this kind. To do a job like grid girl, a girl needs to be strong&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson Portugal GP, manufacturer stats       

After a tough season start, the nine-time world champion will strive to be competitive at Portim&atilde;o. "We need to work hard. I&rsquo;m pleased to see M&aacute;rquez on track this weekend"

MotoGP Portugal, Rossi confident: “It will be easier in Europe”

        Petronas riders Franco Morbidelli and Valentino Rossi head into round three with just four points in the standings. The two Losail events proved difficult for both riders, albeit for different reasons, and the pair hope to get back on the right track at Portim&atilde;o. Morbido has good memories  MotoGP made its debut at this track only a few months ago, local rider Miguel Oliveira taking centre stage. Behind him Jack Miller and Franco Morbidelli battled it out for second and the Italo-Brazilian hopes for a similar race this year. &ldquo;Having reached the podium in Portugal last season, I hope we can get that good rhythm back and be in the mix for a good result this weekend too. Every race is different. We have the data from last year and know we were fast, so at least we&rsquo;ll have something to use as a comparison&rdquo;. &ldquo;Morbido&rdquo; looks on the bright side with regard to the previous races: &ldquo;We&rsquo;re improving in every race and have tried to understand what happened with our set-up in Qatar, we hope we've found some improvements and can continue in a positive vein this weekend&rdquo;. "Portim&atilde;o? Beautiful but difficult"  The Doctor is also ready to head out back out on track and comments: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s wonderful, something different to all the other tracks, but it&rsquo;s also very difficult. It takes time to learn this track and every time you race here you can improve on something&rdquo;. Valentino Rossi wants to start out with the positive sensations found at Losail: "In the Doha GP warm-up, we found something new, which means I was able to maintain a better pace, but we were hindered by a poor starting position. We hope to be stronger in this third race, but also in the next European races&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP Portugal, behind the scenes with Marc M&aacute;rquez: &ldquo;I wanted Qatar&rdquo;       

The two Tavullia riders want do well at the Portuguese track after a tough start to their season

MotoGP Portugal: high hopes for Morbidelli and Rossi at Portimão

        Tomorrow will see him on track in Team Petronas colours for the first time, aside from during pre-season testing, and Valentino Rossi has every intention of enjoying a great weekend. He has good feeling with the M1 and the atmosphere in the garage is also positive. Now all that remains is to twist that throttle and have some fun. &ldquo;I was also happy with the factory team&rdquo;  &ldquo;The start of the season is like the first day of school - says Rossi during the conference - there&rsquo;s always excitement. I&rsquo;ve moved from one team to another and I feel good. The atmosphere is great and the tests didn&rsquo;t go badly. Now we need to see how the weekend goes and what we&rsquo;re able to do in the race&rdquo;. Vale expands on his recent move: &ldquo;Both the factory Yamaha team and Petronas always give it their all and aim for victory. There&rsquo;s always pressure, but I have less people around the bike now. I have to say that the atmosphere was also great on the factory team. I&rsquo;m very happy to have Franco Morbidelli as a team-mate, we&rsquo;re friends and spend a lot of time together. I think he&rsquo;s one of the best MotoGP riders, as he proved last season. So I have added motivation to battle him this season&rdquo;. Who is the favourite?  As the 2021 season begins, who might be the favourite for the title? &ldquo;I think we need to start by looking at the final races of 2020 - continues Rossi -, the fastest guys were Mir, Morbidelli and Miller&rdquo;. None of the riders at the conference name Marc Marquez, absent from these first two rounds and still recovering from his injury. &ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s hard to know what&rsquo;s going on from the outside - adds Vale - he wants to come back, but last year too he returned before he was ready. I hope he&rsquo;s back soon and immediately competitive&rdquo;. Between present and future  This will be the Doctor&rsquo;s 26th season on the grid, but what has changed over the years? &ldquo;26 seasons - he reflects - even saying that gets you thinking. The important thing is to be focused on the present and future. I&rsquo;ve grown up, I&rsquo;ve experienced different emotions, and my passion for motorcycling remains the same. Like the emotion you feel when you exit onto pitlane for the first time, I&rsquo;m sure I&rsquo;ll experience that again tomorrow&rdquo;. So might we see Rossi in the garage again in 2022? How likely is this? &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know how likely it is, I hope it&rsquo;s not my last year but a lot will depend on my results&rdquo;. &ldquo;We battled with Gresini&rdquo;  Lastly, Vale remembers Fausto Gresini, who recently passed away due to complications relating to Covid: &ldquo;I knew Fausto ever since he was a rider, I clearly remember when he helped Capirossi to win at Phillip Island. And then he became a rival, we battled in 250cc and in MotoGP, so I&rsquo;m very sad about what&rsquo;s happened. The entire paddock is scared of this, you realise that Covid is real and can also affect healthy people&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP: Valentino Rossi's new 2021 helmet       

In the first 2021 press conference, Valentino has provided some first impressions of the Petronas garage and also spoke about Marc Marquez: &ldquo;He wants to return but last year he came back before he was ready&rdquo;

MotoGP Qatar, Rossi comments: “I was happy on the factory team too”

        New year, new team, new helmet. This is Valentino Rossi&rsquo;s motto as he heads into 2021, a year that sees him leave the factory Yamaha team and move to the Petronas SRT squad. Blue and neon yellow  The new helmet, once again AGV branded and designed by Drudi, adopts the Italian&rsquo;s familiar style, featuring the Sun and Moon symbols. It&rsquo;s still in the classic blue and neon yellow colours, but also incorporates a touch of red. A classic design, simpler than those worn by Rossi in the past and more in line with his latest helmets from 2018 onwards. One more new feature to mark what is the nine-time champion&rsquo;s 26th world championship season, and his first with Franco Morbidelli as a team-mate. The first races of the year will be fundamental in helping the Italian to plan his future&nbsp;as, as Rossi himself admits, if he is competitive, he will continue to race in 2022. Otherwise, he may decide to stop racing and continue in the paddock as team manager.             Visualizza questo post su Instagram  Un post condiviso da Valentino Rossi (@valeyellow46)      Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP, Qatar GP: is Yamaha ready for the Ducati "red fury?       

The Yamaha rider has unveiled the colours of the helmet he will wear during his first season with Petronas

MotoGP: Valentino Rossi’s new 2021 helmet

        &ldquo;Today was a better day&rdquo; starts Valentino Rossi, who appears a lot more relaxed than the last time we saw him, or rather two days ago, at the end of the previous test session. This second outing, again at the Losail circuit, has got off to a more positive start for the nine-time champion, who places thirteenth with a best of 1&rsquo;54.618. In detail  The 42-year old has good sensations with his Yamaha M1 and explains: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve improved my pace, my feeling with the bike and my lap times. I&rsquo;ve worked hard with the team and am pleased with what we&rsquo;ve done. We&rsquo;re not at the top, but I&rsquo;m closer. The leading two (Miller and Quartararo) completed an impressive time attack, Vinales too&rdquo;. As for the day&rsquo;s work: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve tested new parts, some aerodynamic elements and we&rsquo;ve continued to compare the two frames. Everyone was strong, I&rsquo;m lacking a little something but it&rsquo;s only day one&rdquo;. The frame has won him over  While his feedback wasn&rsquo;t immediately positive during the previous sessions, the Italian has now changed his opinion: &ldquo;The new frame is better than the previous one, it turns better. It doesn&rsquo;t give me the same feeling as the 2019 version but it&rsquo;s close&rdquo;. Rossi also talks positively about top speed: &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve upped it. We&rsquo;re still 10 km/h from the Ducati but we&rsquo;ve improved. I&rsquo;ve had fun and was strong. The problem is that everyone&rsquo;s pushing like crazy and there&rsquo;s still work to do, but it&rsquo;s going a lot better&rdquo;. Jack Miller topped the timesheets, the Doctor commenting: &ldquo;This Ducati is insane, it&rsquo;s very fast and I think Jack is one of the title contenders&rdquo;. MotoGP like F1  The bikes involve an increasing level of aerodynamics and it&rsquo;s easy to draw a comparison with the four-wheeled championship, Valentino going as far as to admit: &ldquo;MotoGP is the F1 of bikes. It&rsquo;s great that the bikes are sophisticated, in their aerodynamics and electronics, because we have to be the best. The best bikes and the best riders. The level is very high&rdquo;. And as for the spectacle, he has no doubts: &ldquo;The important thing is that the races are still spectacular, this is the strength of MotoGP. Considering the lap times and level on track, we&rsquo;re in for some great battles&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP, Miller: &ldquo;Lorenzo? No need to write rubbish on social media&rdquo;       

The Italian has taken significant steps forward with his Yamaha and speaks positively about the new frame

MotoGP, Qatar Test, Rossi: “The Ducati is insane”

        2001 - 2021. It&rsquo;s exactly twenty years since Valentino Rossi took to the track with a satellite team, and a lot has happened since then. Seven world titles (the first in 2001), adventures with Honda, Ducati and Yamaha, so much joy and a certain amount of pain. A series of events that have seen Valentino become a motorcycling legend, one who may be about to embark on his final adventure as a rider as he moves from the factory Yamaha team to team Petronas, swapping places with Fabio Quartararo in what looks to be a generational handover. A decision that is as understandable as it is debatable, and one that has resulted in two camps, as is often the case. On the one side, there are those who believe Rossi can still fight at the front, and on the other side, those who think he&rsquo;s simply delaying his retirement. Some think he&rsquo;s lacking in motivation, while others believe the opposite is true. But first things first. One final triumph, to prove something to himself and others  If there&rsquo;s one thing that Valentino Rossi has demonstrated over the years it&rsquo;s his hunger for victory, and the desire to pursue it at any cost. Rossi&rsquo;s last MotoGP win was at Assen in 2017, four years ago already, something that #46 surely isn&rsquo;t pleased about. So this is Valentino&rsquo;s first motivation in 2021, to score one final win before hanging up his helmet and embarking on the second phase of his life. There is also (perhaps) a desire to prove something to those who no longer believe in him, like the factory Yamaha team for example. Rossi has always been treated as a primadonna, rightly or wrongly, and when this stops, Valentino has always been quick to get his &lsquo;revenge&rsquo;. The most obvious example dates back to when he split from Honda in 2003, when the manufacturer prioritised bike over rider, an affront for Rossi who moved to Yamaha the following year. So Valentino might find extra energy after having been essentially demoted by Yamaha. He may set out to prove that the rider exchange has been made too early, something that might make the Rossi-Petronas pairing a loose cannon for the factory Yamaha team, to be disarmed rather than exploited. The obsession with number ten, and a final lap with his guys  And then there&rsquo;s the ultimate desire, the final piece that would complete a perfect puzzle. We&rsquo;re talking about a tenth world title of course. The fact he just missed out on it in 2015, and in such circumstances, continues to vex the Italian. Sure, Rossi as 2021 world champion sounds more like fantasy than a possibility, and even the bookies aren&rsquo;t betting on him for the title, but the pursuit of this final treasure might serve as further stimulation for Valentino. All while his Academy makes its definitive mark on MotoGP, &lsquo;pupils&rsquo; Pecco Bagnaia and Franco Morbidelli ready to fight for the title this season. The aforementioned pair may well have more of a chance than Rossi, but the desire to do well against them might push Valentino to exceed the limits once again, for an enticing duel between present and future. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP: Will Franco Morbidelli &lsquo;suffer' from Valentino Rossi's arrival?       

Valentino returns to a satellite team for the first time in two decades, driven by a desire to show Yamaha that he&rsquo;s still a champion. Might we see him back on the top step of the rostrum?

MotoGP, revenge and one last triumph: Rossi’s motivation ahead of 2021

        In just two years, team Petronas has become a key MotoGP squad, and its latest goal is to grow even further. Having nurtured the idea of winning the title with Fabio Quartararo, Team Principal Razlan Razali was was then able to enjoy the exponential growth of Franco Morbidelli, who will compete for the team once again in 2021, alongside Valentino Rossi. It&rsquo;s impossible not to begin with the latest arrival, not exactly the average rider. &ldquo;Valentino was always an excellent candidate for our team right from day one - starts Razali - but the pandemic then strengthened his position, because welcoming a rookie would have been more complicated. Rossi can definitely obtain great results, as well as bring stability to the team. The fact that Valentino and Morbidelli are friends can no doubt help the team, as the atmosphere will be positive and we won&rsquo;t need to put up a wall in the garage&rdquo;. Allowing a nine-time world champion to continue to grow is not easy, but Razali remains optimistic. &ldquo;Speaking with both my team and the factory team, I understand that the approaches are different. On the Petronas team we have experienced guys like Ramon Forcada, but also youngsters who are cutting their teeth in MotoGP, and this makes for a great combination. We are able to listen to, and understand, the riders, and as a satellite team we can make ourselves heard if something&rsquo;s not working. I hope all this can help Valentino&rdquo;. Razali: &ldquo;Morbidelli is a hungry artist when he&rsquo;s on track"  While Rossi is new to the squad, Morbidelli is already an integral part of the structure and the Team Principal is quick to compliment him. &ldquo;He expresses himself and behaves like an artist. He has a wonderful outlook on life, he respects everyone and he always remains calm. He&rsquo;s a great guy, and then on track he becomes aggressive and hungry like everyone else&rdquo;. The number 21 rider will once again compete with the &ldquo;A-spec&rdquo; M1, though Razali doesn&rsquo;t think this will stop him from battling against his rivals. &ldquo;Yamaha has a high opinion of Franco as a rider right now, but his contractual situation didn&rsquo;t allow them to give him an identical bike to the other Yamaha riders. His M1 will still receive updates during the year, like last year, to allow him to improve. I think Morbidelli has achieved a good level of understanding with his current M1, and he can definitely be fast&rdquo;. Morbidelli&rsquo;s contract also differs in that it has been made with team Petronas, and not directly with Yamaha. A little unusual for a young talent like Franco, considering the current trend among manufacturers (Ducati for starters) to create a direct link with their most promising riders. &ldquo;Last year, many were focusing on Quartararo, but Morbidelli grew to the extent that he became a title contender. The championship began at a time when we&rsquo;re usually starting to work on contract renewals. Franco had technical problems at Jerez, but then started to shine from Brno. We didn&rsquo;t want to lose him to another team, so we decided to renew with him directly until 2022&rdquo;. Razali doesn&rsquo;t deny that Morbidelli can fight right from the outset this season. &ldquo;Franco has already battled for the title in Moto2, winning despite it all, so I don&rsquo;t think he&rsquo;ll have any trouble dealing with the pressure, unlike Fabio for example. Fabio&rsquo;s performance definitely spurred him on, and I&rsquo;m sure he&rsquo;s in line to be one of the 2021 title contenders&rdquo;.  &ldquo;We want to continue with Yamaha, and not call ourselves a satellite team anymore&rdquo;  Beyond what he might achieve with Rossi and Morbidelli, Razali must start to consider his team&rsquo;s future, considering that the agreement between Yamaha and team Petronas is soon up for renewal. &ldquo;We started to discuss the renewal in December, when I received an initial five-year proposal from Yamaha. We&rsquo;re talking and I hope to have a definitive agreement by May or June. We got on well with Yamaha right from the start, so I hope we can continue together. A team run by Valentino? I prefer not to comment&rdquo;. Razali&rsquo;s structure is an attractive proposal for many, Suzuki for example, which has already made contact, but the Team Principal confirms his desire to move forward with the Iwata manufacturer. &ldquo;When a manufacturer wants to talk, it&rsquo;s only right to listen, and that&rsquo;s what we did with Suzuki, seeing as we are open to all possibilities. Having said that, our decision depends largely on what Petronas wants, so we will follow their indications. The common intention is to continue with Yamaha, due both to the results and their desire to be involved in our campaign to develop young riders, from the Asian championship to the MotoGP. I think we&rsquo;ll be able to stop calling ourselves an independent or satellite team in future (he laughs)&rdquo;. Lastly, Razali touches on his Moto2 and Moto3 teams, both of which look promising this season  &ldquo;In Moto2 we have Vierge, an expert rider, who I think can bring the team its first podium, and a young, developing talent like Dixon, who showed real signs of growth last year. I think both can fight for the podium. In Moto3 it will be interesting to follow McPhee&rsquo;s last season in the category. He can definitely be a title contender, and will probably be spurred on by Darryn Binder, another very fast rider who is ready to move up&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP, Petronas Yamaha unveils its 2021 M1 bikes       

"Valentino will bring stability. Franco can fight for the ttitle, he won&rsquo;t feel the pressure like Quartararo. Our renewal with Yamaha? The desire is there, we don&rsquo;t want to be a satellite team any longer"

MotoGP, Razali: “We’ll give Rossi something new. Morbidelli? An artist”

        The month of March opens with the 2021 Petronas Yamaha Team presentation. The virtual unveiling has revealed the livery of the M1 bikes that will take to the track this season, and their riders too. As well as reconfirmed Franco Morbidelli, the team&rsquo;s highly anticipated new entry is nine-time world champion Valentino Rossi, who takes on a new challenge this season. The 2021 challenge begins  On hand to do the honours was Petronas boss Razlan Razali, who looked back at the 2020 season and outlined the goals for 2021: &ldquo;I hope 2021 is an exciting year, even if it&rsquo;s the second with Covid-19. I&rsquo;m sure that we&rsquo;ll do well with our new line-up. We achieved incredible results in 2020, with pole positions and wins, and we want to do even better in 2021. In Moto2 we&rsquo;ll have Jake Dixon and Xavi Vierge, while our MotoGP flagbearers are Franco Morbidelli and living legend Valentino Rossi. The common goal? To win!&rdquo; Team Director Johan Stigefelt also took to the stage: &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve taken big steps forward in Moto 3 and Moto2 - he explained - achieving podiums and seeing our riders get stronger and stronger. We have two important riders in Moto2. They&rsquo;ve shown their potential in many races and we expect an increasingly strong 2021 from them. The riders can further improve as they work to find greater feeling. In MotoGP, Franco was very determined in 2020 and should continue to score great results. He&rsquo;ll have Rossi as a team-mate, who I hope adapts well to the team&rdquo;.  In the words of the riders  Moto2 riders Xavi Vierge and Jake Dixon also clarified their aims. &ldquo;My 2021 goal? To fight for the top five&rdquo;, commented Vierge, &ldquo;I have more experience and will try not to make the same mistakes as last year. I&rsquo;ll try to be calmer&rdquo;. &ldquo;Our goal is to aim for the podium&rdquo;, said Dixon, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll try to improve, with less accidents and more consistency". Veteran John McPhee will fight for the title in Moto3: &ldquo;The title is within my reach, so I&rsquo;ll be aiming for that. We have the speed but tactics are sometimes more important than anything else in Moto3, so I&rsquo;ll try to improve there too&rdquo;. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll try to do my best - comments new hire Darryn Binder - and be on the podium as often as possible. I&rsquo;ll work hard to score the best result in every race. I really want to improve in qualifying, as that&rsquo;s my weak point&rdquo;. Morbidelli and Rossi, the dream team Lastly, the two MotoGP stars unveiled their prototypes. The livery is similar to that of last season, with its black and emerald green graphics. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s great to work with a team for more than one season - said Morbidelli - they are really professional. This year I&rsquo;ll share the garage with Vale and I expect a good year. I&rsquo;m excited to get back on the bike, I can&rsquo;t wait&rdquo;. And on the other side of the garage, Valentino Rossi: &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t wait to get started - said the nine-time world champion - I want to be competitive, win races, and fight for the podium. We&rsquo;re focused on doing well, and I&rsquo;m proud to be part of team Petronas. I&rsquo;ve had a long career and many seasons with Yamaha, I know the bike and can&rsquo;t wait to begin this new season&rdquo;. Translated by Heather Watson MotoGP, Valentino Rossi admits: &ldquo;I still think about 2015&rdquo;       

Team-mates Valentino Rossi and Franco Morbidelli are seen in team colours for the first time, alongside the 2021 Yamaha prototypes &nbsp;

MotoGP, Petronas Yamaha unveils its 2021 M1 bikes

Here are the first images of the 2021 Petronas Yamaha prototypes for the upcoming MotoGP World Championship

MotoGP: Petronas Yamaha unveils Rossi and Morbidelli's 2021 M1 bikes

The Petronas Yamaha team presentation will take place within this month and as the M1 is unveiled, we will also see Valentino Rossi in official Petronas colours alongside reconfirmed rider Franco Morbidelli. An all-Italian rider line-up, and one that sporting director Razlan Razali is keen to work with.  &ldquo;We need to find a compromise&rdquo;   During an interview with Fox Sport Asia, Razali outlined some goals for 2021: &ldquo;We&rsquo;ll try to be more consistent&rdquo;, he said. &ldquo;Franco already managed this in 2020 and was more consistent than Fabio, Maverick and Valentino. This year, we need to find a compromise so that we don&rsquo;t have bad races like we did in 2020. Consistency is the priority this year, I think that both Yamaha and our team can do it&rdquo;.  To start on the right foot, they first need to identify the errors made last season: &ldquo;I think our problem, or the Yamaha problem in general, is that we have no middle ground. Either we give it our all or do really badly. This was the main issue last year. The Yamaha is clearly a great bike, it won seven races last year, more than any other manufacturer, and we won six of those. It&rsquo;s an excellent bike and I think we&rsquo;ll be able to solve the problems&rdquo;.  Valentino, a mentor   The sporting director went on to talk about Valentino&rsquo;s arrival on the team: &ldquo;Valentino is an icon, a mentor for many youngsters. This will definitely benefit our team because we also have riders racing in Moto3 and Moto2 who can get up close and see how he works. I&rsquo;m sure they&rsquo;ll be motivated if they receive advice from him. We really want to see how he works and learn from him. I have to thank him for putting his trust in our team, and we&rsquo;ll be doing our best to repay this&rdquo;.  Translated by Heather Watson  MotoGP, Fabio Quartararo: &ldquo;I know Yamaha will listen to me&rdquo; 

The Petronas sporting director talks about how Rossi can help, but also about the team&#39;s lack of consistency in 2020, something it aims to remedy in 2021

16 risultati per 'EN petronas yamaha'