81-431: Italian motorcycle road racer Family Eponyms Valentino Rossi ( / ˈ r ɒ s i / ROSS -ee , Italian: [valenˈtiːno ˈrossi] ; born 16 February 1979) is an Italian racing driver, former professional motorcycle road racer and nine-time Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion. Nicknamed The Doctor , Rossi is widely considered one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time. He
162-667: A 29-point advantage over Biaggi) and Portugal . He had another disappointing result in the Valencian Community round when he finished in 11th place, but then scored a string of race wins from the Pacific to the Rio rounds. Rossi won his first 500cc title with 325 points and third title overall, 106 points ahead of Biaggi, who became Rossi's main rival during the season. During the season, Rossi also teamed up with American rider Colin Edwards for
243-500: A failed overtaking attempt. This was the only time he failed to make the podium that season. After Motegi , Rossi scored a podium in the form of second place in Malaysia and back-to-back wins in Qatar and Australia , beating Nicky Hayden for the victory. He finished the season with a second and third-place finish in the inaugural Turkish and the Valencian Community rounds. Rossi finished
324-722: A few occasions. His fun-loving character gained him many fans at the time and in future seasons. After winning the 125cc title in 1997, Rossi moved up to the 250cc class the following year. In the 1998 season , the Aprilia RS250 was reaching its pinnacle and had a team of riders in Rossi, Loris Capirossi and Tetsuya Harada . Rossi had to retire from the first two races in Japan and Malaysia. He came back from this by scoring three consecutive second places in Spain, Italy, and France, but retired once more from
405-558: A final which last 20 minutes or more, with a variety of point scoring calculations to determine the event's overall winner. Typical duration does not normally exceed 25 minutes. Here, speed and successful passing is of the most importance. It normally occurs in the format of qualifying, one to three heats and a final race for trophy positions. Sprint Racing in the United States and Canada are held at three primary levels, club racing (local races at purpose-built tracks), regional racing - like
486-657: A flurry of victories from France to Britain, including three pole positions in the Dutch, Imola and German rounds. After third place in the Czech round, Rossi then gained two more wins in the Catalan and Indonesian races. He finished sixth in Australia. He won the 1997 125cc title, winning 11 of the 15 races with 321 points. Throughout the season, he dressed up as Robin Hood and carried a blow-up doll on
567-470: A light and heavy category. Many people race worldwide in Spec series such as X30 125cc (a TaG class). As in other disciplines in motorsports, a license is required to drive a racing kart in competition. The licenses, issued by governing bodies, are provided by clubs or associations. Basic insurance coverage is usually included in the licence annual fee. In some countries, such as France , regulations require
648-505: A motorsport in itself, it is one of the sports regulated by FIA (under the name of CIK ), permitting licensed racing for anyone from the age of 8 onward. In the United States, there is not as much FIA involvement; instead, many organizations regulate racing, such as the IKF ( International Kart Federation ), WKA ( World Karting Association ), KART (Karters of America Racing Triad), USPKS (United States Pro Karting Series) SKUSA (SuperKartsUSA). In
729-412: A personal computer equipped with a data analysis software. More sophisticated systems allow for more information such as lateral and longitudinal acceleration ( g-force ), throttle position, steering wheel position and brake pressure. Kart racing is generally accepted as the most economical form of motorsport available on four wheels. As a free-time activity, it can be performed by almost anybody, and as
810-454: A pole position in the season's final race at Misano , where he would ultimately finish on the podium. By the second year, Rossi had been provided with a factory Mito by Lusuardi and won the Italian title. In 1994, Rossi raced in the Italian 125 CC Championship with a prototype called Sandroni, using a Rotax engine. The bike was built by Guido Mancini, a former rider and mechanic who had worked, in
891-461: A significant way to go before being competitive even with Rossi at the helm. This proved to be the truth with Ducati's lacklustre performance in the 2004 season, which had actually been worse than their inaugural year in MotoGP in 2003. In his 2005 autobiography, What If I'd Never Tried It? , Rossi offered another reason for choosing Yamaha over Ducati, saying that the mindset at Ducati Corse was similar to
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#1732872382859972-606: A stiffer chassis is preferable, while in wet or other poor traction conditions, a more flexible chassis may work better. Temperature of the track can also affect handling and may prompt additional chassis adjustments. The best chassis allow for stiffening bars at the rear, front and side to be added or removed according to race conditions. Braking is achieved by a disc brake mounted on the rear axle. Front disc brakes are used in most shifter kart classes and are increasingly popular in other classes; however, certain classes do not allow them. Shifter karts have dual master cylinders, one for
1053-421: A transmission in the automotive power train or drive train. The transmission can: Karts do not have a differential . The lack of a differential means that one rear tire must slide while cornering. This is achieved by designing the chassis so that the inside rear tire lifts up slightly when the kart turns the corner. This allows the tire to lose some of its grip and slide or lift off the ground completely. Power
1134-401: A very young age. Rossi's first racing love, however, was kart racing . Fuelled by his mother, Stefania's, concern for her son's safety, Graziano purchased a kart as a substitute for the bike. However, the Rossi family trait of perpetually wanting to go faster prompted a redesign; Graziano replaced the 60 cc motor with a 100 cc national kart motor for his then 5-year-old son. Rossi won
1215-426: Is also the only road racer to have competed in 400 or more Grands Prix. Of Rossi's nine Grand Prix World Championships, seven were in the premier 500cc/MotoGP class . He holds the record for most premier class victories and podiums, with 89 victories and 199 podiums to his name. He won premier class World Championships with both Honda and Yamaha . He rode with the number 46 for his entire career. After graduating to
1296-481: Is commonly perceived as the stepping stone to the higher ranks of motorsports, with most Formula One drivers—including Ayrton Senna , Michael Schumacher , Fernando Alonso , Kimi Räikkönen , Lewis Hamilton , Sebastian Vettel , Nico Rosberg , and Max Verstappen —having begun their careers in karting. Karts vary widely in speed, and some (known as superkarts ) can reach speeds exceeding 160 kilometres per hour (100 mph), while recreational go-karts intended for
1377-403: Is considered by many observers to be one of Rossi's greatest career moments due to the unique circumstances. After being given a ten-second penalty for overtaking Marco Melandri under yellow flags due to a crash by Ducati rider Troy Bayliss , front runner Rossi pulled away from the rest of the field after being informed of the penalty, eventually finishing more than 15 seconds ahead, overcoming
1458-949: Is held annually and lasts 24 hours with multiple classes participating. This event is hosted by the Prokart SSS Club near Johannesburg. The most popular class runs the Honda GX390 four-stroke engine, which is both affordable and durable, keeping running costs to a minimum. The Prokart Super Single Series, also known as Prokart SSS, has been running for more than 20 years and has proven to be a very popular entry platform for drivers of all ages who want to get into karting. Many clubs worldwide have taken on four-stroke endurance karting for this reason, since two-stroke karting can be very expensive. Speedway racing takes place on asphalt or clay oval tracks which are normally between 1/10-mile and 1/4-mile long. Tracks primarily consist of two straights and four left-turn corners, few tracks are symmetric and often
1539-507: Is no suspension , so chassis have to be flexible enough to work as a suspension and stiff enough not to break or give way on a turn. Kart chassis are classified in the United States as "Open", "Caged", "Straight" or "Offset". All Commission Internationale de Karting –, Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile –, or CIK-FIA-approved chassis are "Straight" and "Open". The stiffness of the chassis enables different handling characteristics for different circumstances. Typically, for dry conditions,
1620-852: Is one example. They have become the norm as the top international classes have switched to 125 cc clutch-equipped engines as of January 2007. Wheels and tires are much smaller than those used on a normal car. Wheels are made of magnesium alloy, aluminum , or composite materials . Tires can support cornering forces in excess of 2 g (20 m/s²), depending on chassis, engine, and motor setup . Some car tire manufacturers, such as MG Bridgestone , Dunlop , and Maxxis make tires for karts. There are also specific kart tire manufacturers, which include MG, Vega, MOJO, LeCont, Cobra, Hoosier and Burris. Similarly to other motorsports, kart tires have different types for use appropriate to track conditions: As in other motor sports, several data acquisition systems have been developed for kart racing. These systems allow
1701-448: Is transmitted from the engine to the rear axle by a chain. Both engine and axle sprockets are removable. Their ratio must be adapted to the track configuration to obtain the most performance from the engine. In the early days, karts were direct drive, requiring push starts. The inconvenience of that configuration led to the centrifugal clutch for the club level classes. Dry centrifugal clutches are now used in many categories; Rotax Max
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#17328723828591782-584: The 1997 championship season , he moved from the AGV team to the official Nastro Azzurro Aprilia Team and went on to dominate the season. He immediately started with a pole and race win at the 1997 Malaysian Grand Prix but retired from the next race in Japan. In the next two races, he bounced back by winning the Spanish and Italian rounds. Rossi finished second in Austria, just 0.004 seconds behind winner Noboru Ueda , then scored
1863-1033: The California ProKart Challenge , the Texas Sprint Racing Series , the Florida-based Sunshine Karting Championship Series , Route 66 Sprint Series in the Midwest, and the F-Series Gearup Challenge in the Northeast. National level karting takes place across North America in dedicated national series like the SKUSA Pro Tour Archived 22 July 2024 at the Wayback Machine , the USPKS Championship Series , WKA Manufacturers Cup and
1944-789: The Karting World Championship , SKUSA SuperNats and all SKUSA Pro Tour, USPKS and ROK Cup USA Nationals take place in this format. Sprint racing can be held at a dedicated purpose-built track (most of which also rent club karts for family fun), and sprint races are also held at kart tracks that exist at many major auto sports complexes like Daytona International Speedway , Charlotte Motor Speedway , Pittsburgh International Race Complex , NOLA Motorsports Park in New Orleans, Homestead-Miami Speedway , and Road America . Sprint races are also held at temporary kart circuits that can be built in parking areas at large stadiums and casinos throughout
2025-561: The ROK Cup USA . The SKUSA Pro Tour championship is one of the most coveted, and the SKUSA SuperNats event held in Las Vegas annually is one of the largest kart races in the world, attracting drivers from every continent. The SKUSA SuperNats event has been run continuously for 25 years, and a SuperNats win is considered a legendary win in karting circles. The FIA championships, including
2106-671: The Racing Team VR46 , which competes in MotoGP as of 2024. In addition to his team management role, Rossi competes full-time in the FIA World Endurance Championship , driving for Team WRT , in a BMW M4 GT3, which also bears the now iconic number 46. Rossi was born in Urbino , in the Marche region of Italy. While he was a child, his family moved to Tavullia . The son of former motorcycle racer Graziano Rossi , he began riding at
2187-582: The Rio de Janeiro rounds. He finished second in the Pacific GP after a mistake made him run off into the gravel and relegated him to ninth, which made it impossible for him to catch race winner Biaggi in the closing laps. Rossi ended his season in style by scoring three consecutive poles and race wins in the Malaysian , Australian and Valencian Community rounds. The Australian Grand Prix in Phillip Island
2268-723: The Spanish to the German rounds, including two pole positions in the Dutch and British GPs. His only retirement of the season was from the Czech Republic round. He then had back-to-back wins in Portugal and Rio , two second-place finishes in the Pacific and Malaysia , another victory in Australia and a second-place finish in the final race in the Valencian Community . Rossi went on to win eight of
2349-450: The Suzuka 8 Hours endurance race aboard a Honda VTR1000SPW , becoming the first Italian rider to win the race. The pair won the race despite Rossi's lack of experience racing superbikes . In 2002, 500cc two-strokes were still allowed, but saw the beginning of the 990cc four-stroke MotoGP class, after which the 500cc machines essentially became obsolete. The inaugural year for the MotoGP bikes
2430-528: The 125 cc Italian Sport Production Championship on a Cagiva Mito alongside teammate Vittoriano Guareschi . At his first race meeting with the Cagiva team, he damaged his motorcycle in a first-corner crash no more than a hundred metres from the pit lane. He finished ninth in that race weekend. Although his first season in the Italian Sport Production Championship was varied, he achieved
2511-442: The 1949 to the 2019 season, in alphabetical order, from the classes MotoGP, Moto2, Moto3, 500 cc, 350 cc, 250 cc, 125 cc, 80 cc and 50 cc. Kart racing Kart racing or karting is a motorsport discipline using open-wheel , four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits , although some professional kart races are also held on full-size motorsport circuits. Karting
Valentino Rossi - Misplaced Pages Continue
2592-507: The 2006 title with a crash in the final round at Valencia. In 2007, he ultimately finished third overall, before regaining the title in 2008 and retaining it in 2009. After a 2010 season marred by a broken leg and no title defence, he left Yamaha to join the Ducati factory team, replacing Casey Stoner for the 2011 and 2012 seasons, and endured two winless seasons with the Italian marque. Rossi returned to Yamaha in 2013 and finished fourth in
2673-561: The Catalan round. He gained more points by finishing sixth in the 2000 Dutch TT . It took nine races before Rossi won on the Honda, but his first 500cc victory came after a fierce battle with the Suzuki of Kenny Roberts Jr. and the Aprilia of Jeremy McWilliams . On a track that was affected by ever-changing weather conditions and despite only qualifying in seventh position on Saturday, the Italian chose
2754-730: The Factory Yamaha team proved to be even more dominant than the year before. Rossi immediately began the season by capturing pole and winning the first round in Spain in a controversial manner, colliding with the Gresini Honda of Sete Gibernau on the last lap. He scored a second-place finish in Portugal but then went on to take five consecutive victories from the Chinese to the Dutch rounds, including three pole positions in France , Italy and Assen . In
2835-566: The MSA. Billed as the UK's first national karting league , the Elite Karting League also falls outside of MSA governance. In Australia, kart racing is administered by one of the following Karting bodies: Racing classes start at age 7 or 8 (5 in the United States with "Kid Karts") and generally run in 3-year age groupings or weight divisions until "senior" status is reached at age 15 or 16, depending on
2916-639: The Madrid round. He scored his first victory at the 1998 Dutch TT , when he was more than 19 seconds ahead of second-placed Jürgen Fuchs . He had to retire from the British Grand Prix but bounced back by achieving a podium place in Germany, finishing third. In the Czech Republic, he crashed out of the race, but then enjoyed a flurry of victories from Imola to Argentina. He finished the season, his rookie year in
2997-602: The Rio round. However, it was Kenny Roberts Jr. who clinched the 2000 title after finishing in sixth position, which gave him an unassailable lead in the championship. After his second 500cc win, Rossi went on to finish second in the Pacific race and third in the Australian races. He finished second in his rookie season in the 500cc class with 209 points. Rossi dominated his second season in the 500cc class, scoring 11 wins and only finishing off
3078-473: The UK, the Motor Sports Association (MSA) regulates most "owner driver" Karting. Some associations, such as NatSKA (National Schools Karting Association), organize race meetings throughout the country under the authority of the MSA. Various four-stroke "hire kart" series such as EPEC (European Prokart Endurance Championship) or BRKC (British Rental Kart Championship) fall outside the governance of
3159-484: The UK, the most celebrated karting series is the National karting series, also known as Super One . There are three types of Super One championships: Other UK National Championships include: Birel BirelART series UK: Cadet 60cc, Junior 100cc, Senior Light 125cc, Senior Heavy 125cc, British Indoor Karting Championship (BIKC) The BRKC is the UK's rental karting National championship, and the UK's official feeder series to
3240-744: The United States. Additionally, there are street races where races take place on city streets on temporary circuits like some of the IndyCar races. Endurance races last for an extended period, ranging from 30 minutes up to 24 hours or more, for one or more drivers. In general, consistency, reliability, and pit strategy is of greater importance than all out speed. Called "enduro" racing in the United States, most WKA and IKF sanctioned events typically last 30 minutes (sprint enduro) or 45 minutes (laydown enduro) and are run continuously without pit stops. Enduro events are held on full-size road racing circuits that are usually between 1.5 and 4 miles in length. As well as
3321-528: The age of 38. After three winless seasons with the Yamaha factory team, he moved to Petronas SRT for 2021, retiring after only one season with the satellite Yamaha team and failing to achieve a podium for the first time in a career spanning 26 seasons in Grands Prix. The dominant force in MotoGP in the 2000s, all of Rossi's seven premier class titles came in this decade, including 77 race wins and 48 pole positions. In
Valentino Rossi - Misplaced Pages Continue
3402-509: The class, as the championship runner-up with 201 points, just 23 behind champion Loris Capirossi. In the 1999 season , his second year in the 250cc class, Rossi became the sole driver of the official Aprilia Grand Prix Racing team, and dominated the championship. He began with a pole position in Malaysia but finished fifth on race day. He gained further points in Japan and went on to win the third round in Spain. Rossi had his second pole position of
3483-661: The debut of Rossi, then 17, in Grand Prix motorcycle racing. He had some success in his first year, scoring consistent points and sometimes finishing just off the podium in his races from Malaysia to Italy, but he retired in both the French and Dutch rounds. He scored more points by finishing fifth in Germany, but suffered another retirement in the British round. At the 1996 Austrian Grand Prix , Rossi achieved his first ever podium by finishing in third place after battling with Jorge Martínez . In
3564-411: The driver to monitor from a display fixed on the steering wheel some parameters such as RPM, timing of laps (including sectors), number of laps, best lap, cooling system temperature, exhaust gas temperature and sometimes speed or even gear for shifter karts. Some of those systems are able to record (logging) laps data from the sensors, allowing replay of an entire running session or/and direct download to
3645-461: The end of the season. Mid-season rumours pointed towards a possible move to Ducati, which sent the Italian press into a frenzy; the concept of Rossi on the great Italian bike seemed too good to be true. Ducati did indeed try to seduce Rossi into riding their MotoGP bike, the Desmosedici , but for numerous reasons Rossi passed the offer up. Critics say that compared to the other manufacturers, Ducati had
3726-505: The ensuing 12 seasons, he managed 12 race wins and seven pole positions. During this period, Rossi was the 6th most successful rider in terms of total race victories. Rossi was inducted into the MotoGP Hall of Fame as an official Legend by the FIM at the awards ceremony after the conclusion of the 2021 season. His #46 bike number was retired at the 2022 Italian Grand Prix . Rossi owns and manages
3807-484: The famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race for automobiles there is also a 24-hours event for karts which takes place at the kart circuit Alain Prost at Le Mans , France. This race has taken place since 1986 and its winners list include four-time Champ Car champion Sébastien Bourdais (in 1996). Endurance racing is also considered a more affordable way of getting into karting. In South Africa, the 24 Hours of Karting Festival race
3888-518: The fastest growing in the United States is Lo206. The general classes are 125cc Shifter, 100cc tag, 125cc tag and then the X30 equivalents of these karts. The CIK-FIA sanctions international championships in OK , OKJ , KZ1 , KZ2 and Superkart . These are regarded as the top-level classes of karting and are also raced in national championships worldwide. The World Championship is decided here. In May 2019 it held
3969-553: The final race of the previous season on his Honda bike. Rossi took another pole in Spain but his fourth-place finish on Sunday saw the end of a 23-race podium streak. He once again had to miss out on the podium in France but responded with three consecutive victories in Italy , Catalunya and the Netherlands , a race that he won from pole after a hard-fought battle with Gibernau. In the Rio de Janeiro race, Rossi crashed out when he lost
4050-404: The finish line after a titanic battle between the two. After Germany, Rossi won three more races and scored two more poles: a pole position converted into a victory came in the Czech Republic where he battled with championship rival Gibernau once more, Rossi overtaking him on the final lap to take victory by just 0.042 seconds. A regular victory came in Portugal and another pole-victory came in
4131-529: The first United States round since 1994, Rossi struggled and finish in third place whilst local hero Nicky Hayden won the race. Rossi bounced back by picking up three more wins, starting from a pole-victory in a rainy Great Britain and two regular victories in Germany , holding off Gibernau on the last lap, and the Czech Republic . Rossi's crashed out of the Japanese round when he collided with Marco Melandri during
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#17328723828594212-459: The first nine races of the season, eventually claiming 11 victories in total. He clinched his second title in the Rio de Janeiro race, his first in the inaugural class, and fourth title overall with four races remaining. After a strong 2002, Rossi continued to dominate in 2003 despite competition from emerging Spaniard Sete Gibernau . Rossi took pole and won the first round of the season in Japan , but
4293-515: The following race in Catalunya , despite making a poor start that dropped him to 15th place at the end of the first lap. He scored a second place after narrowly losing out on the race victory with Biaggi in the Dutch round. He followed this up with another win: this time the British GP. Rossi finished a disappointing seventh in Germany but then took back-to-back wins in the Czech Republic (gaining
4374-601: The following race, the 1996 Czech Republic Grand Prix , he achieved both his first ever pole position , on the Saturday, and his first ever race victory in the 125cc class on the Sunday. He rode an AGV Aprilia RS125R and won after another tussle with Jorge Martínez. Rossi earned more points at Imola but was forced to retire in both the Catalan and Rio rounds. He scored points in the final round in Australia, finishing his first season in ninth place with 111 points. In his second year,
4455-745: The front and one for the rear, and are adjustable to allow for front/rear bias changes. Professionally raced karts typically weigh 165 to 175 lb (75 to 79 kg), complete without driver. Avanti , Tony Kart, Trulli , Birel , CRG , Gillard , Intrepid , Remo Racing , Kosmic, Zanardi or FA Kart and EKS are a few well-known examples of the many European manufacturers of race-quality chassis. Emmick, Coyote, Bandit, Shadow, MGM, Titan, PRC and Margay are American companies producing kart chassis. Racing karts mostly use small two-stroke or four-stroke engines; however, as of 2022, there has been small-scale adoption of electric motors in racing karts. Purpose of transmission: There are three reasons for having
4536-542: The front of his M1 and slid into the gravel whilst battling with Makoto Tamada , Max Biaggi, Nicky Hayden and Alex Barros , forcing him to retire from the race. After the Rio round, Rossi found himself off the podium once more in fourth place in the German GP but bounced back by winning the British round from pole. He then went on to finish second in the Czech Republic , first in Portugal and second once again in Japan . In
4617-456: The general public may be limited to lower speeds. American Art Ingels is generally accepted to be the father of karting. A veteran hot rodder and a race car builder at Kurtis Kraft , he built the first kart in Southern California in 1956. Early karting events were held in the Rose Bowl Stadium car park. Instantly popular, Karting rapidly spread to other countries, and currently has a large following in Europe. The first kart manufacturer
4698-524: The high costs associated with kart racing led them to choose to focus solely on racing minimotos. Through 1992 and 1993, Valentino continued to learn the ins and outs of minimoto racing. In 1993, Rossi was given his first opportunity to ride a 125cc motorcycle by former world champion Paolo Pileri , who became a team manager after retiring from competition. Later in 1993, with help from his father, Virginio Ferrari , Claudio Castiglioni and Cagiva factory racing team manager Claudio Lusuardi , Rossi competed in
4779-425: The inaugural Qatar round, controversy arose when Rossi's team was penalised by starting in the back of the grid for grid cleaning. Gibernau won the race, whilst Rossi crashed out of the race when he was in sixth position. Despite this second DNF of the season, Rossi scored a pole that he converted into a win in Malaysia and two more regular victories in the Australian and Valencian Community rounds, battling with
4860-404: The international under-15 championship. The driver who finished first overall was Vlad Sputzki (Russia) followed by Daniel Smith (England) and then followed by Maximilien Blank (Australia) CIK-FIA categories: Non CIK-FIA categories: The Kart World Championship (or KWC) as opposed to the FIA's "Karting World Championship" uses 4-stroke rental karts and travels to a different country each year. In
4941-417: The last lap. He won in Italy and came second again in Catalunya . He took two third-place finishes in the Dutch and British rounds – the latter the result of a ten-second penalty for overtaking under yellow flags, gifting victory to Max Biaggi in the process – and another second place in Germany , once again battling Gibernau who denied him victory with just 0.060 seconds separating both when they crossed
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#17328723828595022-414: The likes of Troy Bayliss, Nicky Hayden, Makoto Tamada and Max Biaggi to take his ninth victory of the year. Rossi finished first with 304 points to Gibernau's 257, with Max Biaggi third with 217 points. He clinched his third MotoGP, fourth top class and sixth overall championship in the penultimate race of the season in Phillip Island , beating Gibernau by just 0.097 seconds to do so. In 2005, Rossi and
5103-454: The one he was trying to escape from at Honda. Ultimately, Rossi signed a two-year contract with rivals Yamaha reportedly worth in excess of US$ 12 million; a price no other manufacturer, even Honda, was willing to pay. Rossi made the switch from Honda to Yamaha and signed a two-year contract with the team. Many doubted his move and would expect Biaggi, who joined the Honda Pons team a year earlier, as well as Gibernau to be genuine contenders for
5184-420: The past, with Loris Capirossi . A documentary about Mancini, called "Mancini, the Motorcycle Wizard" (Il Mago Mancini), was released in 2016 by director Jeffrey Zani and explains the birth of the motorcycle and the relationship between Rossi and the mechanic. In 1995, Rossi switched to Aprilia and won the Italian 125 CC Championship. He was third in the European Championship. The 1996 championship season marked
5265-405: The penalty and winning the race. Rossi won the 2003 title in Malaysia, his third in the top class and fifth title overall, with two races remaining. He won the final race in the Valencian Community round with a special livery, this race marking his final win for Honda. With increased scepticism that the reason for his success was the dominance of the RC211V rather than Rossi, they parted ways at
5346-408: The podium three times. He started the year off with a victory in Japan after battling with Max Biaggi. He then achieved back-to-back poles and race wins in the South African and Spanish rounds. He finished the French race in third place but crashed out of the Italian round whilst leading the wet race after taking another pole on Saturday. Rossi bounced back by taking pole position and winning
5427-433: The premier class in 2000, Rossi won the final 500cc World Championship (becoming the last satellite rider to win the top-class title until Jorge Martín in 2024) and the 8 Hours of Suzuka with Honda in 2001. He also won MotoGP World Championships with the factory Repsol Honda team in 2002 and 2003 and continued his run of back-to-back championships by winning the 2004 and 2005 titles after leaving Honda to join Yamaha. He lost
5508-436: The race was marred by the death of Japanese rider Daijiro Kato who crashed in the 130R and hit the barrier at high speed in the ensuing Casio Triangle. Rossi finished second in the South African round before winning again in Spain , despite falling back to ninth place on the opening lap. Rossi scored three pole positions in the next three races and finished second in France after battling with Gibernau, who overtook him on
5589-410: The regional kart championship in 1990. After this, he took up minimoto and, before the end of 1991, had won numerous regional races. Rossi continued to race karts and finished fifth at the national kart championships in Parma . Both he and his father thought about transitioning to the Italian 100cc series and the European series, which could have potentially directed him toward Formula One . However,
5670-642: The rental Kart World Championship. NatSKA is a budget karting association set up for schools and youth groups in the UK, with 13 classes. In the United States, Dirt oval classes (which often use Briggs & Stratton industrial engines) are prominent in the Southeast and Midwest. In the West, European style sprint racing is much more common. In particular, 125cc shifter karts using Honda CR125 power units have gained tremendous popularity in recent years. In Australia, classes include Cadet (previously called Midget),Junior KA4, Junior KA3, X30, KZ2, Senior KA3, Senior TAG (Restricted and Unrestricted). Most classes run
5751-418: The right tyres and stormed through the field to battle with Roberts Jr. and McWilliams and win his first race in the 500cc class. After his victory in Donington Park , Rossi went on to score consecutive podium places in the next three races: two second-place finishes in Germany and the Czech Republic and one third-place finish in Portugal. He retired from the Valencian Community round after a crash. Rossi won
5832-919: The season in France, but retired from the race. He bounced back with back-to-back wins in Italy and Catalunya. He finished second at the Dutch round, narrowly losing out to Capirossi. He then won the next three races from the British to the Czech Grands Prix. Rossi finished second in Imola, but was off the podium in eighth place at Valencia. He finished the season strongly with three more wins: one in Australia, where he fought hard against Olivier Jacque , one in South Africa, and one in Rio de Janeiro. After that, he finished third in Argentina despite starting in pole position. He actually won
5913-545: The season in first place with a total of 367 points, 147 points ahead of second-place finisher Marco Melandri and captured his fourth MotoGP, fifth top class and seventh overall championship in Sepang with four races remaining. He won 11 races including wins in three rain-affected races in Shanghai , Le Mans and Donington . List of Grand Prix motorcycle racers This is a list of Grand Prix motorcycle road racers from
5994-424: The series. Typically, race formats are one of the following: Sprint racing takes place on dedicated kart circuits resembling small road courses, with left and right turns, hairpins, chicanes, and short and long straightaways. Tracks range from 1/4-mile (400 metres) to over 1 mile (1,600 metres) in length. The sprint format is a series of short-duration races, normally for a small number of laps, that qualify for
6075-540: The shape parallels that of an egg or a tri-oval . "Offset" kart chassis have been developed for precise handling and adjustability in left-turn-only racing competition taking place on oval and tri-oval tracks. Depending on the track material, different tires are used on the kart. Speedway kart races range in length from 4 laps for a trophy dash, to 20 laps for a main event. The two chief racing formats used in dirt speedway karting are heat races and timed laps qualification: There are many different classes in kart. One of
6156-416: The standings followed by three successive runner-up positions in 2014 , 2015 and 2016 . His best chance of winning a tenth title came in 2015, where he led the standings for most of the season, finishing five points behind team-mate Jorge Lorenzo , the eventual champion. 2017 was the final season in which he achieved over 200 championship points, and he won his final race victory in the 2017 Dutch TT at
6237-647: The title in Rio de Janeiro, with the Argentinian round in hand, and finished the season with 309 points, his first 250cc world championship title and his second title overall. After achieving the 250cc World Championship in 1999, Rossi was given a seat with Honda in what was then the highest class in World Championship motorcycle racing, the 500cc. Retired five-time 500cc World Champion Mick Doohan , who had also had Jeremy Burgess as chief engineer, worked with Rossi as his personal mentor in his first year with Honda. It
6318-556: The title this year. With the traditional first venue of the season in Suzuka having been taken off the calendar due to safety concerns following the fatal accident of Daijiro Kato in 2003, the 2004 season started in Welkom in South Africa. Rossi took the pole on Saturday and won the South African race after a hard-fought battle with Max Biaggi, becoming the first ever rider to win consecutive races with different manufacturers, having won
6399-497: Was 2002, when riders experienced teething problems getting used to the new bikes. Rossi started the year off strong and won the first race in wet conditions in Japan , beating several local riders who were racing as wildcards. He also took the pole position in the first five races. Rossi finished second in South Africa , where his teammate Tohru Ukawa took his first and only victory in the MotoGP class. He then scored victories from
6480-455: Was also the first time Rossi raced against Max Biaggi . Rossi started off his first year in the 500cc class with retirements in the first two rounds: he crashed out of the South African and Malaysian races. He scored points in the third round in Japan and picked up two third-place finishes in Spain and France. Rossi picked up additional points in Italy and another third-place podium finish in
6561-508: Was an American company, Go Kart Manufacturing Co. (1957). In 1959, McCulloch was the first company to produce engines for karts. Its first engine, the McCulloch MC-10, was an adapted chainsaw two-stroke engine . Later, in the 1960s, motorcycle engines were also adapted for kart use, before dedicated manufacturers, especially in Italy ( IAME ), started to build engines for the sport. The chassis are made of chromoly tubing. There
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