Fiat Yamaha Team
FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix
Season 2009
Rider Profile:  Valentino "The Doctor" Rossi

After two torrid seasons, Valentino Rossi returned to winning form in 2008 and recaptured the MotoGP title, a crown he had made his own from 2001-2005. The Italian won 9 races – equal to his first season with Yamaha in 2004 – and stood on the podium at 16 out of 18 rounds. Notable highlights in an exceptional year included a seventh straight win at Mugello, a titanic duel with Casey Stoner in Laguna Seca, where Rossi had never previously won, and a historic victory at hurricane-struck Indianapolis.

Rossi eventually took the title in the best possible way, with a win at Yamaha’s home track in Japan, with three races to go. It was his eighth career title and his third with Yamaha. This season also saw the 29-year-old edge past compatriot Giacomo Agostini to become the most successful rider in the history of premier-class motorcycle racing.

Born in Urbino, Italy in 1979, Rossi was riding bikes from an early age thanks to his father, Graziano’s influence, himself a former Grand Prix winner. Following an early start in go-karts, Rossi progressed to minimotos and quickly showed a talent on two-wheels, becoming regional champion in 1992. The next few years saw him quickly rise up the ranks of junior road racing, claiming the Italian Sport Production Championship in 1994 and the Italian 125cc Championship in 1995. The latter, twinned with an impressive 3rd place in the 125cc European Championship, was enough to secure him a ride in the World Championship the following year.



Rossi`s World Championship debut came at the Malaysian Grand Prix in 1996, finishing his first international season in 9th place and one race win. The following year he became the youngest rider ever to win the 125cc World Championship with 11 race-wins on an Aprilia. The pattern continued when he moved to the 250cc class, taking 2nd place in his first year before becoming World Champion in 1999 again with Aprilia.

2000 marked a new phase of Rossi’s career when he joined forces with Honda in the 500cc class. He proved his worth by finishing 2nd, before becoming the last ever 500cc World Champion in 2001. He subsequently took the MotoGP World title in 2002 and 2003, before moving to Yamaha, winning it again in 2004 and 2005.

Rossi made history by moving to Yamaha in 2004 and winning the season-opener Grand Prix in South Africa, becoming the first rider in the sport’s history to win back-to-back premier class races for different manufacturers. He went on to win 9 out of 16 races, finally clinching the World Championship title - Yamaha`s first for 12 years, with victory at the penultimate Grand Prix at Phillip Island. A final win at the Valencia Grand Prix also ensured that the Yamaha Factory Team also won the team title.

Dominating the 2005 season, Rossi won 11 races in total, scored 5 pole positions and only finished off the podium once. In doing so he joined an elite club of 5 riders in the sport’s history to win the premier-class title on 5 occasions. He also helped Yamaha to win the Manufacturers’ and Team titles; ensuring Yamaha celebrated its 50th Anniversary with one of its best ever years in Grand Prix.

2006 saw him finish World Champion runner-up for only the second time in his premier-class career when he lost the title to Honda’s Nicky Hayden by just five points after the final showdown in Valencia. Despite this, Rossi still took 5 wins and 5 pole positions in 2006, more than any other rider, standing on the podium 10 times.

2007 was undoubtedly one of the hardest seasons of his career. Rossi took four wins in 2007 and several podiums, but his prodigious talents were limited by technical and tyre issues as well as plain bad luck. The Italian missed out on the runner-up spot in the championship by just one point after his final race was wrecked by injury and third place was his lowest championship finish since his rookie year in 1996.

Rossi turned 30 in February 2009 but his enthusiasm and drive remains undimmed having signed with Yamaha for 2009 and 2010. He continues to have the support of his long-standing Crew Chief, Jeremy Burgess, who moved from Honda to work with him at Yamaha in 2004. Virtually recognised wherever he goes, Rossi is also a keen Inter Milan football club supporter. He is also an accomplished rally driver, finishing 12th in the British round of the World Rally Championship last December.

Factbox: VALENTINO ROSSI

Race Statistics: Valentino Rossi

Team	Fiat Yamaha Team
Bike	YZR-M1
Competition Number	46
Total Grand Prix contested	216 (156 x MotoGP/500cc, 30 x 250cc, 30 x 125cc)
First Grand Prix	Malaysian Grand Prix, 125cc, 1996
First road race	Bike racing debut on Minimotos in 1991
Total World Championship wins	8 Grand Prix (1 x 125cc, 1 x 250cc, 1 x 500cc, 5 x MotoGP)
Grand Prix Wins	99 (78 x MotoGP/500cc, 14 x 250cc, 12 x 125cc)
Grand Prix Podiums	156 (120 x 500cc/MotoGP, 21 x 250cc, 15 x 125cc)
First Grand Prix podium	Austrian Grand Prix, 1996, 125cc, (3rd)
Grand Prix Pole positions	52 (42 x MotoGP/500cc, 5 x 250cc, 5 x 125cc) (42 x 500cc/MotoGP, 5 x 250cc, 5 x 125cc)
First pole	Czech Grand Prix, 1996, 125cc

For information on the Fiat Yamaha team visit the team's new website at www.FiatYamahaTeam.it or the official website at http://www.yamaha-racing.com/Racing/
For information on the MotoGP, visit the official website at www.motogp.com or visit the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme website at www.fim.ch