The podium at Brands Hatch galvanized Valentino Rossi ahead of the 1000km of Paul Ricard, the second event of the GT World Challenge Endurance Cup of the season and third of 2023 in the SRO Motorsports Group series.
The ‘Doctor’ at Le Castellet has already ridden in the pre-season tests and on the BMW M4 GT3 of Team WRT he finds Augusto Farfus as a teammate together with Maxime Martin.
In France last year he obtained what was the best result of the season, when he was still aboard the Audi prepared by the team of Vincent Vosse, which has now moved on to the Bavarian marque.
Valentino showed up polished and tanned on the transalpine track, aware that the commitment is not the simplest and that Road To Le Mans on the Circuit de la Sarthe awaits him next week as part of the 24h of the FIA WEC.
The boy from Tavullia spoke about all this in a round table with the journalists present at Paul Ricard, including Motorsport.com. Here’s what he told us, always with the ever-present smile and total serenity that denotes the concentration he has in this commitment.
#46 Team WRT, BMW M4 GT3: Valentino Rossi, Maxime Martin
Photo by: SRO
“We arrive here after the first podium obtained at Brands Hatch and we are very happy and energized. I think this race will go well. I consider the second one after the 24h of Spa important, because it is a 6h race that takes place at night and the track it’s great for the cars,” said Rossi.
“We arrive rather optimistic, first of all because last year we finished fifth by having a good race and having a lot of fun, and secondly because on paper the track suits our car well. In the pre-season tests we have done here we have been rather strong”.
“We struggled a bit in free practice because the track was wet at the start, but it was useful for understanding how the car behaves on wet tires and also for trying to figure out the best time to put on slicks. Right from the At the start I struggled a bit with the set-up and I didn’t find the car that fantastic.”
“We continued the work we started in the Spa tests, but here the level of grip is higher, so it’s just a question of finding the ideal set-up level to best express our potential.”
#46 Team WRT, BMW M4 GT3: Valentino Rossi, Maxime Martin
Photo by: BMW Motorsport
The result of Brands Hatch has given you a lot of energy, are you convinced you can still score a podium?
“Yes, we’re very happy and I’m convinced that the potential is there. We could already get there at Monza, but unfortunately we only managed it in the second race. It’s always an important result, both in terms of which it’s beautiful and because it’s always We’ll also try in the Endurance Cup, the start of the season was positive for me and I think we can play it almost anywhere with everyone, but we also know that anything can happen in Endurance. We’ll have to choose the right strategy Furthermore, with 57 cars it’s not easy. But in 2022 I had a lot of fun and even at the start I did well. The podium is the goal”.
In your opinion, is it more important to do the first stint with the start, or wait for dark to train at night in view of Spa?
“The start is very important in every race and therefore it also becomes important for the driver, but actually it’s the same for getting behind the wheel at night. Last year I did the initial double stint here and it was quite demanding, we’ll see after the qualifying who will start, a lot will depend on the pace and the lap times”.
Are you confident ahead of Spa after testing?
“Yes, because the car goes very well on that track and we managed to improve the set-up of the car over the two days. In the end my pace was good, so I’m confident also because Maxime is very fast in all Augusto wasn’t there in the tests, but we know he’s doing well too, so I think we’ll be competitive.”
#46 Team WRT, BMW M4 GT3: Valentino Rossi, Maxime Martin
Photo by: SRO
After the first 6 months with BMW, how would you describe this new adventure?
“First of all I have to say that Team WRT is fantastic and the atmosphere is always fun, which is very important. BMW gives us much more support than Audi last year, they are always present on the track and believe a lot in the project I have in mind, they always want us to be competitive. This is important to improve and the M4 is nice to drive. In 2022 I got on very well with my teammates, but this year even more. Maxime is a lot of fun. professional and very strong, Augusto is a big name in GT racing, so I think we are a competitive team.”
About your classmates, what did you learn new from them?
“Mainly the way to drive the car using onboard data and videos; looking at the images of Maxime and Augusto is very important to understand the trajectories and lines to take to improve. With bikes this thing doesn’t exist, we only have the telemetry and you can follow a better line to exploit, but you can’t actually look at what it is from the outside because we don’t have an on-board video camera.Compared to motorcycles, in this category there are many different things to learn, including pit stops, rider changes, long-distance driving and so much more you can learn by racing with these guys.”
Do you feel ready for next week’s Le Mans challenge?
“I’m very happy to be able to go there and find out what it’s like, among other things I’ll test the car with the Michelin tires which are new to me and probably faster. I’ll have to understand what the car is like also in view of next year I’m also curious to understand the atmosphere of this great race”.
#46 Team WRT, BMW M4 GT3: Valentino Rossi
Photo by: SRO
Did you train on the simulator?
“Yes, a lot, also because it’s the only way to try the track in the length of the 24h given that it’s usually closed and is only opened for this event. It will all be very important to be ready next year”.
As a companion you will have Jerome Policand, the head of Akkodis-ASP, which is your rival team in the GTWC…
“True, when Vincent Vosse came to tell me I was amazed, I asked if he was joking, since we usually race against him! However, I trust Vincent, I spoke to Jerome for about ten minutes and I saw that he is already very concentrated in view of the race. Moreover, he was immediately fast when he tested the car, knowing how much experience he has, I think we can be strong”.
When you ride a motorcycle, do you do it for fun or because you think you’re organizing something?
“I continue to train with motorbikes first of all because I enjoy it and then because I like trying out together with the Academy riders. And in any case, even when I was racing motorbikes I trained with cars and karts, in the end it helps to try out different things and keep exercise physically”.
