WILL WE MISS VALENTINO ROSSI IN 2022?

The new Motogp season is a step into a new era as the first premier class campaign since 1999 without Valentino Rossi lined up on the grid. The nine-time grand prix motorcycle world champion bowed out of Motogp after 26 seasons of racing at the end of 2021. He will now bring the charm that propelled Motogp into the mainstream to the GT World Challenge Europe, where he embarks on a campaign on four wheels in 2022 with WRT and Audi.

The 2022 season is the reality that Motogp has been building towards for the past decade. Undoubtedly, Rossi leaves Motogp in better shape than when he joined in 2000, although he can’t take all the credit for that. While the loss of Rossi will bring with it an adjustment period, Motogp is firmly looking to the future and hopes to make superstars of its new heroes through the incoming Amazon Drive to Survive-style docuseries Motogp Unlimited.

Motogp, of course, won’t be without some Rossi hype in 2022. His VR46 team will race in the premier class this year with Ducati, having finally cobbled together a title sponsorship deal with banking firm Mooney. Rossi’s proteges also occupy leading positions in the series, with Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia – runner-up in 2021 – ready to build on his breakout campaign last year when he won four races to properly challenge for the championship. And three-time race winner Franco Morbidelli, the VR46 Academy’s first world champion and first Motogp rider, has been promoted to the factory Yamaha squad.

Meanwhile, at VR46, Rossi’s half-brother Luca Marini (below) will fly the family flag alongside team-mate Marco Bezzecchi, while Yamaha has partnered with VR46 to form a team in Moto2 for 2022.

What pre-season testing made abundantly clear was that Rossi’s absence wasn’t nearly as glaring as it could have been. There’s nothing to suggest that will change when racing starts in Qatar this Sunday.