"Nine world championships is a great achievement, I'm so
happy," says newly crowned MotoGP World Champion
Valentino Rossi. "I would need one hour to thank
everyone! Starting with everyone at Yamaha - Furusawa-san,
Lin Jarvis, Davide Brivio and all my guys, especially
Jeremy. I couldn't have done it without Jeremy and he is
like my motorcycle father! I also have to thank my
family and friends - Stefania, Graziano, Uccio, Albi...so
many! All the team, Yamaha and Bridgestone; together
we've done a great, great job and it's always a huge
enjoyment to ride and work with these people. In order
to stay at this level through a whole season you have to
be calm and have the right people around you and this is
what I have. We've stayed concentrated and focused even
in the bad moments, so we can congratulate ourselves
with this ninth title.
"Today without the rain it could have
been a brilliant race, with the four top riders fighting
together, but the rain changed it, all our work was thrown
away and we had to start with a bike we didn't know so well.
I made a good start but I made a mistake in braking, it felt
like I was braking for one year and I went wide! Of course I
wanted to win but after the first corner it was difficult
with Casey so strong so I went for the podium. I really
enjoyed the race and I think it was great to watch.
"After Dovizioso unfortunately crashed I
tried to go with Dani but then he started to push and I
already had the podium, so I decided to take it a bit
easier. I was happy to risk a little for the podium, but it
wasn't sensible to keep taking risks for second when the
championship was safe.
"The t-shirt and the celebration is
called the ‘Gallina Vecchia!" In Italian we say that the old
chicken makes good soup, but it's no use for laying eggs. I
am old now, 30, but this old hen has made another egg today
and now we have nine! As usual I thought it up at home in
Tavullia, together with my fan club, and we had great fun
designing the t-shirt and the helmet.
"It's been a great season, for sure one
of the hardest at times. It's been harder than last year,
when we won after two difficult years, but we've had some
troubles this year at times and I have had a very hard rival
in my team-mate Lorenzo. He has pushed me to new levels and
I think it's been a great duel to the end. There have been
some bad moments, like Portugal when we weren't at 100%, but
we have worked well. Lorenzo has done a great job to put
this pressure on us so I have to say well done to him.
"This season we've had a mono-tyre rule
but we have still improved the lap record in many laps and
this shows that we've all been on the limit all season. This
is why we've all made mistakes; this is to be expected when
you have four riders fighting together. The best moment of
the season for me, the best emotion, was the last pass in
the last corner at Barcelona. This was the most exciting
moment of the championship for me, one of the best for many
years I think! The worst moment was probably the stupid
error and crash in Indianapolis, but this led to the perfect
win in Misano in front of all the fans so in the end it was
okay!
"I still feel just as motivated as ever.
I still have a great passion to ride better and better, to
be on my bike and to win. I enjoy always trying to improve
and to work with my team to do this. I am 30 but I still
feel great emotion and great satisfaction from success. My
passion for motorcycles is what keeps me enjoying every race
and helps me to keep pushing even though I am the oldest of
these first top guys. I have to train harder and work harder
to stay focused now, but I still enjoy the challenge as much
as ever.
"I think next year will be very, very
hard. We're all on the same bikes and I think it will be
between me, Lorenzo, Stoner and Pedrosa again. On Tuesday in
Valencia we will try the new model and I am looking forward
to working on the new M1, but I have the greatest rival in
my team so it won't be easy! Every championship is special
for different reasons, it's unforgettable every time and
this day is no different. I'm World Champion once again and
now I want to go and party!"
