Rossi reveals ‘romantic’ pre-race routine

By Laura Thomson

He's a seven-time MotoGP World Champion so you’d think Rossi’s pre-race routine would be fairly straightforward, right? Wrong.

In an interview with Italian TV show Che Tempo Che Fa on RAI, the 39-year-old has revealed the ‘romantic’ measures he takes before each race, in order to keep on top of his game.

But the object of affection isn’t his model girlfriend. Instead, the Yamaha rider likes to spend the run-up to the race whispering sweet nothings to his motorcycle.

"I keep all the Yamahas with which I have won world titles,” he revealed.

“Before each race I spend around 40 minutes around the bike, I speak to it, almost like were are on a date.”

And despite the big 4-0 fast approaching, Rossi shows no sign of slowing down.

"February 16, I turn 40? Needless to say, I would never have thought of racing that long,” he said.

“But I never asked myself if I would race until I was 40 because it was always my dream to be a motorcycle racer.

“Maybe others will do it in the future, but the important thing is to remain competitive.

“When I signed in March 2018 I thought that the two-year contract would lead me to run at age 40, and the thought of doing it was there.

“I am convinced, if we can improve the bike we can be strong.”

Rossi will be on track for the first time in 2019 during official testing at Sepang in Malaysia from February 6-8.