ISLAMABAD: Valentino Rossi has signed a one-year contract extension with Yamaha which will see him move to the manufacturer’s satellite team for the 2021 season, the MotoGP outfit announced on Saturday. “Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd. is pleased to announce that it has signed a one-year renewal agreement with Grand Prix racing legend Valentino Rossi,” Yamaha said in a statement. “The nine-time World Champion will be participating in the 2021 MotoGP World Championship as a fully supported Factory Yamaha rider for the PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team.” Considered one of the greatest motorcyclists of all time, the 41-year-old has won the MotoGP championship seven times, with four of those titles coming with Yamaha.
The Italian holds records for MotoGP and 500cc wins (89) but he hasn’t won an elite class race for three years.
He dominated the sport in the first decade of the century but has been replaced as the sport’s number one rider by six-time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez. Rossi finished last season in seventh place.
“I am very happy to continue riding in 2021 and to do it with the PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team,” Rossi said in a statement.
