On the next lap, Morbidelli was flying – again. The San Marino GP winner was 0.082 under Quartararo’s time at Sector 3, but could he hold it through Sector 4? Well, Morbidelli did more than hold his advantage. Sector 4 was a stunner for the number 21 as he shot to the top, beating Quartararo’s time by over two tenths to lay down the gauntlet. Further behind, Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) went P6 as Quartararo went in search of a final lap charge. It didn’t prevail for the MotoGP™ sophomore, but a lap was being strung together by the rider just ahead of him – Zarco. The Frenchman put in a solid last flying lap to go P6, shoving former teammate Pol Espargaro off the second row at the chequered flag.
Quickest in Q1 was Tennor American Racing’s Joe Roberts, and the American spearheads Row 3 in P7 for his first Saturday top 10 since his Czech GP pole position. After finishing second in FP3, rookie Marcos Ramirez makes it two Tennor American Racing liveried Triumphs on the third row – that’s Ramirez’ best qualifying of 2020. Remy Gardner (Onexox TKKR SAG Team) completed the top 10 in Q2, but after crashing under yellow flags on Friday, the Australian faces a six-place grid penalty, meaning Bastianini will move up a position into the top 10 – every little helps for the Italian who faces a tough task to mix it with Marini on Sunday afternoon.
It had been rumoured to have been pretty much a done deal for several months, but we’ve all been eagerly waiting for an official announcement over the future ride for the nine-times world champion Valentino Rossi.
Today and after six months of negotiating, finally PETRONAS Yamaha have announced that Valentino Rossi will be joining his prodigy Franco Morbidelli as teammates for 2021. Valentino Rossi needs no introduction as is considered by many to be the greatest rider of all time, after a record-breaking career in the sport.
Valentino Rossi has been competing in the premier class since 2000 and is the only rider in history to win 125, 250, 500 and MotoGP World Championships. In the premier class alone, Valentino Rossi can lay claim to seven world titles, 89 race wins, 199 podiums, 55 pole positions and 76 fastest laps. As part of PETRONAS Yamaha in 2021, Rossi will compete aboard a full factory backed Yamaha YZR-M1 for the ninth season in a row.
The move will see Rossi join the satellite team riding in what will be only their third season in the MotoGP category, after the Malaysian squad made their debut at the Qatar GP in 2019. That first season in the premier class saw PETRONAS Yamaha SRT rack up six pole positions and seven podiums, and win the Independent Teams’ Championship. This year has already seen three pole positions, four podiums and three race wins, and the lead of the outright Teams’ Championship, for the outfit.
Valentino Rossi
Valentino Rossi
I am very happy to continue riding in 2021 and to do it with the PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team. I thought a lot before taking this decision, because the challenge is getting hotter and hotter. To be at the top in MotoGP you have to work a lot and hard, to train every day and lead an ’athlete’s life‘, but I still like it and I still want to ride.
“In the first half of the year I made my choice and I talked with Yamaha, who agreed with me. They told me even if there was no place for me in the Factory Team, the factory bike and the factory support were guaranteed.
“I am very happy to move to PETRONAS Yamaha SRT. They are young, but they‘ve shown to be a top team. They are very serious and very well organised. For this year I also changed my crew chief. I‘m very happy with David, and I think we haven‘t reached our best yet. This was one of the reasons why I chose to continue, because the atmosphere in the team is something I like a lot.
“It‘ll be nice to have Franco as my team-mate, as he‘s an Academy rider, it‘s going to be cool. I think we can work together to make good things happen.
Lin Jarvis – Managing Director, Yamaha Motor Racing
We are delighted that Valentino will be staying in MotoGP for another year, and we are sure the fans of the sport feel the same way. A substantial part of the MotoGP fanbase will have grown up with Valentino and followed him throughout his career.
“This current and final season with the Factory Yamaha Team is his 25th in the motorcycle Grand Prix racing World Championship and his 15th year with Yamaha.
“Early on we assured Valentino that, should he stay in MotoGP for 2021, Yamaha would continue to give him full support and a Factory YZR-M1. In the end, this is exactly what he decided to do.
“I previously stated that this Covid-19 influenced MotoGP season would not be the appropriate year for such a legendary rider to close his career. Valentino has always been so popular with the fans all around the world, so it‘s great that he has decided to continue for at least another season. Hopefully the fans will be allowed back into the tracks next year to savour watching the GOAT in action again.
“I would like to thank the management of the PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team for their enthusiasm and full collaboration to welcome Valentino into their team. They are still quite a ’young‘ team, but they are very professional and serious contenders for race wins and feature in the top of the championship standings, so we are sure that Valentino will feel comfortable and be able to perform at his best level.
Petronas SRT Yamaha Team Principal Razlan Razali and Team Director Johan Stigefelt
Razlan Razali – Team Principal
On behalf of PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team and all its partners, it is an absolute honour to welcome Valentino Rossi – an iconic rider and legend into the team next year. His experience will be a great asset to the team as we move into our third season in MotoGP and we are sure we will be able to learn a lot from Valentino. At the same time, we will do our absolute best to assist him to be competitive to reward him for the trust he has in us as a team. We are humbled by this opportunity and ready to take on the challenge. We believe that the combination of Valentino and Franco will provide a truly formidable force
on track to help us in our goal of being as competitive as possible together next year. We can’t wait!
Johan Stigefelt – Team Director
To be able to sign a rider like Valentino Rossi, for what will be only our third year in the MotoGP championship, is amazing. We have evolved from a Moto3 team to a Moto2 team to a MotoGP team in a short time frame and now to be leading the MotoGP teams’ championship and signing one of the greatest riders the sport has ever known is incredible. It has been a long time since Valentino was in a satellite team and we will try our best to help him feel like new again. We want to make sure that he feels comfortable in our team, which we trust in and believe in so much. Our target is to get even better as a team, help Rossi
deliver the best results possible and make 2021 a memorable year.
‘The Doctor’ will leave the Yamaha factory team to partner Franco Morbidelli
It was the news the MotoGP world has been waiting for: Valentino Rossi will shift sideways at the end of the 2020 season, leaving the Yamaha factory outfit to see out his riding career at the satellite Petronas Yamaha SRT team.
The move will see seven-time premier class champion Rossi racing at the pinnacle of motorcycle racing at the age of 42, although it has been confirmed his long time mechanic crew of Alex Briggs and Brent Stephens will not be following the Italian legend to the independent team garage.
Rossi will partner his former protégé Franco Morbidelli and be riding a 2021 specification Yamaha M1 in the satellite team that was formed after Hervé Poncharal’s Tech 3 team signed with KTM. This year the Petronas team leads the teams championship courtesy of four podiums and three race wins. Former Moto2 World Champion Morbidelli, having claimed his maiden MotoGP win in the premier class at Misano several weeks ago, is a graduate of the VR46 Academy.
The move becomes a basic swap and will see Fabio Quartararo move into the factory Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team alongside Maverick Vinales.
This was the official response from the Yamaha Petronas team:
Razlan Razali, Petronas Yamaha SRT Principal: “On behalf of PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team and all its partners, it is an absolute honour to welcome Valentino Rossi – an iconic rider and legend into the team next year. His experience will be a great asset to the team as we move into our third season in MotoGP and we are sure we will be able to learn a lot from Valentino.
“At the same time, we will do our absolute best to assist him to be competitive to reward him for the trust he has in us as a team. We are humbled by this opportunity and ready to take on the challenge. We believe that the combination of Valentino and Franco will provide a truly formidable force on track to help us in our goal of being as competitive as possible together next year. We can’t wait!”
Johan Stigefelt – Petronas Yamaha SRT Director: “To be able to sign a rider like Valentino Rossi, for what will be only our third year in the MotoGP championship, is amazing. We have evolved from a Moto3 team to a Moto2 team to a MotoGP team in a short time frame and now to be leading the MotoGP teams’ championship and signing one of the greatest riders the sport has ever known is incredible.
“It has been a long time since Valentino was in a satellite team and we will try our best to help him feel like new again. We want to make sure that he feels comfortable in our team, which we trust in and believe in so much. Our target is to get even better as a team, help Rossi deliver the best results possible and make 2021 a memorable year.”
Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Alex Rins was the unlucky man to miss out and will start 13th, plus there was a disaster for the Ducati duo of Francesco Bagnaia and Andrea Dovizioso. The Pramac Racing man will start Sunday’s Catalan Grand Prix from 14th on the grid and the World Championship leader will start from a disastrous 17th on the grid.
On his second run, Fernandez then reclaimed P1 and it was a good lap – the Moto3™ sophomore went to the summit by 0.186. However, the standings were going to be shaken-up in the closing stages with seven riders lighting the timing screens up with red sectors as they 18-rider field chased pole position. The fastest of them all was Arbolino, the Honda man was over three tenths under Fernandez’ lap time halfway around the lap and through the third split, Arbolino was nearly four tenths under. The Italian made no mistake through the final sector either and crossing the line, the time was astonishing. Arbolino absolutely obliterated the lap record and his competitors to take Catalan GP pole by over six tenths – staggering.
Partnering Rossi in the premier class is something Morbidelli could have only dreamt about back in 2014. One, because reaching MotoGP™ – the pinnacle of motorcycle racing – isn’t something that happens to everyone. Of course, Morbidelli’s searing talent and hard work saw him rise to Moto2™ superiority and subsequently, a MotoGP™ star. And two, because he – like most of us – probably thought Rossi wouldn’t be racing at the age of 41. He’ll be 42 by the time the season is in full swing in 2021, yet more testament to Rossi’s continued motivation and ability to be competing with the next generation of scintillatingly fast MotoGP™ riders.
Rossi – Urbino, 16th February 1979 – has competed in the premier class since 2000 and is the only rider in history to win 125cc, 250cc, 500cc and MotoGP™ World Championships. In the premier class alone, Valentino boasts seven world titles, 89 race wins, 199 podiums, 55 pole positions and 76 fastest laps. As part of Petronas Yamaha SRT in 2021, the Italian will compete aboard a Yamaha YZR-M1 for the ninth season in a row.
