It’s been a theme of grand prix racing for more than 10 years. What happens when Valentino Rossi goes?
As we are seeing with ever greater intensity, Rossi doesn’t go. During that long spell of wondering and waiting, on the other hand, he just keeps going. Or keeps coming back. Evergreen, in spite of being predominately yellow.
Just as well, really, because it has taken that full decade for Dorna to put in places changes designed to deal with the inevitable slump of his eventual departure. Fairer, cheaper racing is the goal. As if that could make up for his absence. Especially if he leaves while still at the top, the position he has so emphatically regained in the first third of this season.
Rossi expects to stay on for next year at least. That means he’ll be there when the main ingredients of Dorna’s post-Rossi recipe are finally assembled on the chopping board.
Along with his nine championships and 110 Grand Prix wins, the giant from Tavullia’s reign has encompassed the full journey of the premier class, from 500 two-strokes (he was of course the final 500 champion) to the all-classes all-four-stroke championship of today, and on to 2016’s final destination of standardized electronics and dumbed-down factory bikes.
A big journey for him. His presence and pre-eminence have played a big part in masking the ups and downs of a big journey taken by racing itself.
The four-strokes were promising at first, but were hit by dwindling grid numbers as the likes of Aprilia, Kawasaki and eventually Suzuki withdrew. Team Roberts and the Proton KR also went; the Ilmor was just one false start by another independent. The Blata V6 was still-born; KTM just a temporary visitor. Costs kept rising, but the hoped-for replacements for the lost tobacco sponsors were very slow in coming forward. The grid kept shrinking: in 2011 the Australian Grand Prix had just 14 starters.
Rossi sailed on sublimely and the racing fan base grew and grew. But the series was clearly in trouble. The popularity was because of the star quality of the dominant rider, rather than the racing itself. He had always done his best to make it entertaining. His commercial understanding was at least as acute as Dorna’s, as he built up the VR46 brand, still growing today.
To read more of In The Paddock in this week’s Cycle News, click here