Jorge Lorenzo: “Valentino Rossi was kind to the cameras - I could not and did not want to do that”
Teammates and rivals Lorenzo and Rossi battled on and off-track, infamously creating a wall down the centre🥀 of their🌃 garage to prevent secrets leaking to the other side.
Their differing personalities defined their era of MotoGP - Rossi was characterised as affabl𒈔e and lova♔ble, Lorenzo as aloof and cold.
"For better 🐲or for worse I always sai💟d what I thought", Lorenzo said.
"I was authent꧒ic because I had to go out and compete. Rossi knew how to be kind to the cameras before going out, while for me it was something I couldn't and didn't want to do.
"There are different types of riders - those who💦 are nicer and get along well with everyone and those who are more with the team.
“I didn't get along very wel🌱l because I was always working."
Lorenzo ended his career with three premier class champions🐭hips, compared to Rossi’s seven. They each won two world championshiﷺps with the other as their teammate.
Lorenzo said about retirജing from MotoGP: "What I miss most is winn꧃ing.
“I𝔍 believe that one is born competitive because of genetics or that directly he does not like to compete. I'm very competitive, at school I invented games with my friends to beat them.”
He hated defeat even as a child, he explained: "You have no other choice, I had to learn when I was 10 years ol🌌d. Out of 7 races I won 6, but when I didn't win and finished third I didn't even want to get on🙈 the podium."
But Lorenzo reveals how age can inhibit a riderꦛ: "At 20 in🧔 the wet I won, but at 30 my head stopped my wrist and did not let me give gas because I saw the danger.”
James was a sports journalist at Sky Sports f🐷or a decade covering everything from Aꦗmerican sports, to football, to F1.
