30th March 2016

There is not a motorbike lover who has not heard about Valentino Rossi. At a time, when people are moving to cars, Valentino Rossi and his tribe are holding the fort for motorbikes. He is already a legend in motor biking with an amazing 9 MotoGP titles under his belt and probably more to come.

But at 37 years, Rossi is also in his motorbike racing twilight years. In a few years, this champion of champions will bid adieu to the sport and the motorbike racing will lose one of its brightest stars. But that day is still far away.

Valentino Rossi to stay at Movistar Yamaha

Rossi has confirmed he is going to stay with his current ride, Movistar Yamaha till 2018. But he has also indicated that 2019 will be his last year on the circuit.

Some weeks before, Rossi said he had two choices before him now that he was getting on in years. He could stop riding altogether or he could continue at Movistar Yamaha. He chose the latter. Now we know that Rossi was willing to wait till the mid-season before asking Yamaha for a new deal for two years. But Yamaha did not make him wait so long. It gave him the deal he wanted during pre-season testing itself. So we know that Rossi will stay in MotoGP for two more years at least.

And why not? With a strong 2015 season, there is no reason for him to give up now. He was a favorite to win the 2016 MotoGP championship but it finally went to his Yamaha team mate, Jorge Lorenzo. The last season also proved he is still one of the best in the sport.

Valentino Rossi had almost given up on MotoGP in 2006

There was a time when Rossi was considering quitting MotoGP for F1 (2006). He tested the Ferrari F1 car and was one of the fastest on the circuit. But better sense prevailed and he decided to stay back at MotoGP. Like this, the MotoGP world retained one of its brightest stars. He went on to win the 2008 and 2009 MotoGP championships.

Going back to the question of his retirement, he is clear about what he is going to do once he retires. He has indicated he will move to car racing at exciting events like Le Mans and Dakar.

On his decision to stay back at Yamaha, Rossi said he was very satisfied with his choice. He said he had always planned to stay in MotoGP as long he was motivated to compete and continued to enjoy the sport.

Rossi will ride the Yamaha YZR-M1 in 201. He rode the same bike last year also. He also thanked his team and his fans for standing behind him. He promised to keep pushing so he could get back on the podium in 2016. As they always say, the best is yet to come.

So here’s wishing Rossi the best and we hope he continues to thrill MotoGP fans for years to come.