“Fortunately I have won a lot in my career, and I no longer need to achieve certain results. I prefer a challenge and now I’m trying to win with Ducati,”
Who would have thought that we would hear Valentino Rossi say something like this, but, say it he did in an exclusive interview with Spanish TV on the weekend?
Rossi went on to say..
“Mainly I race because it’s fun and I still enjoy it. I’m never sure how it will go, and I don’t know if I’ll ever win with Ducati, but I’ll do my best to make it happen.”
Asked if he regretted the move to Ducati, Rossi answered..
“I’m happy with my decision. It was something I had to try and winning as an Italian rider on an Italian bike would be special. I never thought that I had made a mistake.”
Thanks to visordown for the contents of this interview.
Now, of course, how much of this is media-speak and how much of it is the truth is anyone’s guess, but it must be said that Vale has traditionally been pretty straight with the press so we can probably accept this on face value.
In other words, winning isn’t everything, as my title suggests. And, for Rossi, that’s probably true, after all he has won so much over the years, perhaps the lure of winning isn’t what it was; maybe the challenge IS enough to sustain him. For riders who are still on the way up or who have raced for years with little success the statement must appear incongruous, however. And, of course, Rossi can always fall back on the fact that he is still the most highly paid motorcycle racer in the world. As my uncle used to say, “Money isn’t everything, but it’s a long way ahead of whatever’s coming second.”
In other news, the annual Ducati world celebrations wound up on the weekend with a drag race competition on Ducati Diavells which resulted in a win in the final to Troy Bayliss over Valentino Rossi. Poor Vale can’t take a trick, can he?
In industry news, Triumph has officially released their super tourer, the 2013 Trophy. Aimed squarely at the BMW market niche, the bike appears to have the goods although I wonder if 1200cc and “only” 132bhp is going to be enough. I’m also worried about the 301kg weight, but, time will tell. Thanks to asphalt and rubber, here’s the whole story.
In sadder news there have been three fatal accidents involving motorcycles and hit-run motorists here in NSW in the last week. Last night police arrested two people in connection with an accident in Sydney’s western suburbs where a female pillion passenger died, they are continuing to investigate an accident where a 59-year old man died in Waterfall after an apparent hit-run involving a truck and they are still searching for another vehicle suspected of having left the scene of an accident earlier in the week. Add to this the fatal accident involving a truck and two cars just down the road from me on Monday and it underlines again the dangers that we all face when sharing the road with the inattentive/careless/stupid/drunk/drugged (cross out whichever doesn’t apply) users of our highways and byways. Stay alert and stay safe, peoples.
jeffb says
I quite like the look of the Trumpie tourer, Phil. Know I’ll never afford it- but one can dream I suppose. Thanks for the link.
Phil Hall says
No worries. Yes, you’re probably still better off with this one’s grandfather!!