Spanning 26 seasons, Rossi is among the most embellished rivals in world motorsport, the Italian successful a record-equalling seven premier class title and 9 total throughout MotoGP, 250cc and 125cc.
From 414 begins, Rossi has taken 115 grand prix victories, with 89 of these coming within the premier class, whereas his complete podium haul stands at 235 as of the 2021 Dutch TT.
After dropping his manufacturing unit Yamaha slot for 2021, Rossi elected to proceed his profession into this season with backing from Yamaha at Petronas SRT – however the marketing campaign has to this point been his worst ever, the Italian scoring simply 19 factors from the primary 9 races.
Because of this, retirement has appeared a certainty for the reason that summer season break – although the potential for him racing his personal VR46 Ducati in 2022 did seem, after it emerged the title sponsorship between the workforce and Saudi oil large Aramco doesn’t exist.
On Thursday on the Styrian GP – on the venue the place Rossi took his first grand prix podium within the 125cc class again in 1996 – the Italian legend introduced his retirement from MotoGP.
“I stated throughout the season I’d take my resolution for subsequent yr after the summer season break. I made a decision to cease on the finish of the season, so sadly this would be the final season as a MotoGP rider,” Rossi stated in a press convention forward of the Styrian GP to announcement his resolution.
“It’s troublesome, it’s a really unhappy second as a result of it’s troublesome to say and to know that subsequent yr I can’t race with bikes. I’ve carried out this for kind of 30 years so subsequent yr my life will change.
“However anyway, it was nice, I loved it very a lot, it’s an extended, lengthy journey and it was actually, actually enjoyable.
“It’s 25 or 26 years on this planet championship. It was nice and I had an unforgettable second with all my workforce, with all the blokes that work for me. So I don’t have so much to say, simply this.”
Valentino Rossi, Petronas Yamaha SRT
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
The 41-year-old made his grand prix debut within the 125cc class in 1996 and was champion within the division the next yr earlier than stepping as much as the 250cc class in 1998 and successful the title in 1999.
For 2000 Rossi was signed by Honda to a factory-backed satellite tv for pc NSR500 and dominated the 2001 marketing campaign to win the primary of his seven premier class titles.
For the brand new four-stroke MotoGP period in 2002 Rossi rode for the Repsol Honda workforce, successful the title in 2002 and 2003 earlier than making a shock swap to Yamaha for 2004 after his relationship with HRC soured.
Yamaha hadn’t gained a grand prix all through 2003, however Rossi took the revamped M1 to victory in his first race on the bike in South Africa after a duel with Max Biaggi and would go on to win the title.
Rossi was champion once more in 2005, however troublesome campaigns in 2006 and 2007 noticed him cede the title to Honda’s Nicky Hayden and Ducati’s Casey Stoner.
Rossi added two extra titles to his tally in 2008 and 2009, however the tide was turning at Yamaha and the arrival of Jorge Lorenzo in 2008 led to escalating tensions.
The Italian’s 2010 title hopes vanished when he broke his leg throughout follow for the Italian GP, with Lorenzo happening to win the championship.
Rossi made a big-money transfer to Ducati for 2011, however scored simply three podiums throughout disastrous 2011/2012 campaigns and returned to Yamaha in 2013.
Returning to successful methods at Assen that yr, Rossi gained twice in 2014 and was runner-up within the championship earlier than mounting a cost for the 2015 title in a bitter battle with Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo.
After accusing Marc Marquez of conspiring with Lorenzo to sabotage his title hopes in Australia, Rossi’s championship aspirations fell aside in Malaysia when a controversial incident with Marquez netted him a back-of-the-grid begin for the Valencia finale.
Valentino Rossi, Yamaha Manufacturing unit Racing, Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Group
Photograph by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Rossi fought by to fourth however Lorenzo was topped champion. This marked a turning level in Rossi’s profession, his tally of wins shrinking from 4 in 2015 to simply two in 2016 and one in 2017.
And for the reason that 2017 Dutch TT, Rossi has been winless in MotoGP, whereas his podium haul shrunk from 5 in 2018 to 2 in 2019, one in 2020 and to this point none this season.
Rossi’s larger-than-life character and his well-known rivalries with the likes of Biaggi, Sete Gibernau, Casey Stoner and Lorenzo, helped propel MotoGP into the mainstream.
The Italian’s legacy will reside on by his VR46 Riders Academy, which has helped younger Italian expertise, and his VR46 workforce – which can make its MotoGP debut in 2022.
Having famously flirted with a swap to Formulation 1 within the 2000s and brought half in quite a few automotive occasions, Rossi has beforehand expressed a need to race GT3 equipment after his MotoGP profession and probably compete within the Le Mans 24 Hours.