Rossi’s rise and fall
Is it time for Valentino to quit?
It’s hard to gauge how successful Valentino Rossi has been in 2018. On one hand, he’s used his incredible consistency to be a year-long front runner, secured a handful of podiums and run as high as second in the championship. On the other, he hasn’t won a race and never at any point looked like he was in the fight for the title. The 39-year-old won’t look back at the season fondly.
All his woes stem from a series of problems that conspired against him and his M1. Already struggling in the second half of 2017 due to acceleration and grip issues that left him and teammate Maverick Viñales unable to challenge in the second half of races as grip reduced. It was these problems that worsened when the 2018 machine debuted with its sealed engine specification in Qatar.
Making a decision that with hindsight looks increasingly bizarre, MCN’s sources believe Yamaha went with a lighter crankshaft this season to try and close down the gap in top speed to Ducati and Honda. However, while that may have brought the top-end power they wanted, it’s exacerbated the grip issues they were already suffering with. And while rivals like Honda in the past faced similar issues and fixed them by modifying the engine with an external flywheel to allow alterations to the mass of the sealed engine, the shape of Yamaha’s inline four engine means that option is off the cards. Despite all that, Rossi has remained incredibly upbeat throughout. Finally finding some pace as the season comes to an end and says he’s now hopeful they can put a tough season behind them and move onwards when their new bike rolls out for the first race in Qatar in three months’ time. “The season was very similar to 2017,” he says. “Although that year was better because in the first part we were more competitive. It’s been difficult, because we’ve struggled a lot and it was hard to keep concentration and motivation, especially with a season so long. But I always enjoy riding, I always go to a circuit positive and we’ve got to continue to fight. Everything is possible and we can improve our situation to be stronger, because to be sure it’s more fun to fight for the win!
“After Thailand, we improved our speed and have been a bit more competitive; Maverick was able to win in Phillip Island and I was able to lead in Sepang.
“We have a lot of work to do during the winter, though. We always push to have something important to try and in the next month or so we’ll find out if we can be faster next year.”
And while Rossi believes he still has the chance of lifting that elusive 10th world championship, he says another major motivation is the pure enjoyment he gets from lining up on the grid.
“I’ve worked every day for a long time to be champion and I want to try to keep fighting for it. But I also want to try to win races. I want to be battling every Sunday for the podium. I race for the taste of the victory, for what I feel after a good race and a good weekend. For that feeling you have for 10 or 12 hours after the race. That’s the only reason I’m here.”