Valentino Rossi: MotoGP great on switching to GTWCE ‘to feel the adrenaline'

Valentino Rossi has opened up on the difficulties of ending his legendary MotoGP career and the reason he has started a new adventure by swapping two wheels for four.
Valentino Rossi
Valentino Rossi

Nine-time motorcycle world champion Rossi, now 43, brought his MotoGP career to a halt at💜 the end of last season but now is behind🐼 the wheel of a Team WRT Audi R8 and will race at the GT World Challenge Europe at Brands Hatch on Sunday.

It will be the second race of his new adventure - in his debut at Imola, he finished 17th after 𓄧a mishap during his team pit stop resulting in him driving past his crew. 

But Rossi was, as usual, all smiles in the build-up to his secon☂d race and revealed why he made the transition: “I always had an idea to race with cars, since when I started with motorcycles.

“Thiꩲs idea with GT3 helped me to stop with the bikes!

“To stop was very difficult. I drove cars in t🧸he past𒅌 just to improve my skills. 

“I want to be competitive.

“You need something - you need🌱 to feel the adrenaline, to remain a drivﷺer, to remain on the track, to jump in the car, to wear the helmet.

“Th🍨is iꦑs the same as from when I was five-years-old.

“I hope I can race cars for [several] seasons.”

Swapping MotoGP for GT World Challenge

The 24 Hours of Spa and Le Mans are the new go🔴als set by Rossi for himself.

“I want to be competitive w🍸ith the good guys – to have t꧑he speed and drive the car at the maximum, to be as strong as them,” he said. 

“Yes, Le Mans is an ambition but this year we race in Spa and that🤪 is the greatest race for the GT3 cars because you have 60 cars and all in the same class.🤪 

“Le Man💖s is another story 𝄹with different cars and on the track and I’m very excited for Spa.

“Also because I have never driven at Spa. I have never been there and everybody say💫s that it🅠 is a great track. 

“Afterꦜ, also in the future, I would like to try Le Mans.”

Here’s how to live stream the 2022 MotoGP Jerez for free no matter where you are in the world.

What is ? 

 is a fast, easy to use and secure ser꧒vice that allows you to watc♓h any stream from anywhere in the world.

Geo-blocking is often a problem that many faces when trying to stream live but ExpressVPN allows you to do so with eas꧅e.

How does  work?

 allow﷽s you to securely relocate your device to any country.

How to watch Jerez highlights for free online

To watch highlights for free on YouTube:

1. Get 

2. Connect to a server location in the UK

3. Visit the official YouTube channel. Tune in to the Jerez highlights

How to watch on TV

Live MotoGP: Spain Opening Day begins from 8am on Friday, until 3pm, live on BT Sport 2 and🐎 covering Free Practice 1 and Free Practi🍒ce 2.

MotoE qualifying is live on B🎉T Sport 2 from 3.45pm on Friday.

On Saturday, the action begins live on BT Sport 2 from 8am with coverage of Free Practice 3.

Then from 11am on the same channel we have live coverage of Qualifying.

From 3.15pm, MotoE Race 1 is live.

The Rookies Cup is live from 4.15pm.

On Sunday the Jerez warm-up is live on BT Sport 2 from 8am.

The Moto3 race is live from 9.15am before the Moto2 race at 11am.

BT Sport 2’s live coverage of MotoGP Jerez is live from 12.30pm. And their post-race show, Chequered Flag, is on at 2pm.

James was a sports jou♛rnalist at Sky Sports for a decade 🌠covering everything from American sports, to football, to F1.

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