Seven-time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi might stop the World Endurance Championship to deal with the GT World Problem Europe as he appears to be like to downscale his racing in 2025.
The BMW manufacturing facility driver has defined to Motorsport.com that he’s planning to chop again on the variety of races he contests from this yr’s 16 occasions primarily for household causes, which embody the upcoming delivery of his second youngster.
This represents a shift in his place from earlier in 2024, when he outlined a need to proceed racing with the WRT staff in each WEC and the Endurance Cup leg of the GTWCE for a second season.
“I realised that 16 races is just too many and I’m in the identical state of affairs as in MotoGP,” mentioned the 45-year-old Italian, who might be going into his fourth full season of automotive racing after his retirement from two wheels.
“I’m drained and my accomplice, Francesca, will get offended as a result of I’m at all times on the highway.
“For 2025 my aim is to run 10 to 11 races: I must resolve whether or not to do GTWCE or WEC.
“One is a world championship, so successful the title has particular status, however within the Stephane Ratel Organisation races [GTWCE] the racing is absolutely good with solely GT3 vehicles.”
#46 Group WRT BMW M4 LMGT3: Ahmad Al Harthy, Valentino Rossi, Maxime Martin, #31 Group WRT BMW M4 LMGT3: Darren Leung, Sean Gelael, Augusto Farfus
Picture by: Andreas Beil
Rossi’s expression of a need to scale back his racing actions is just not new, however he had beforehand described the 13 races of a programme combining WEC and the long-distance GTWCE occasions as “a extremely good quantity”.
He revealed on the identical time that he was unlikely to contest the Bathurst 12 Hours spherical of the Intercontinental GT Problem in February 2025 as he has accomplished for the previous two seasons as a result of it can battle along with his forty sixth birthday. Will probably be a major celebration, he identified, as a result of his race quantity all through his MotoGP profession was #46.
Now he has mentioned that his 2025 season “will begin in Bathurst”.
WRT boss Vincent Vosse clarified Rossi’s place to Motorsport.com: “Vale needs to scale back his variety of races and the one approach to do this is to do only one championship.
“It’s a resolution that must be taken: does he do WEC or GTWCE? It’s one thing that’s up within the air and actually isn’t clear in the intervening time.
“There are various elements, and one is the BMW’s efficiency within the WEC, which hasn’t been what we have been anticipating, and one other is Valentino’s FIA driver categorisation.”
Rossi was downgraded from gold to silver standing for this yr, paving the way in which for his transfer into the WEC in LMGT3, the place every automotive should run a bronze and a second non-professional who’s often a silver.
#46 Group WRT, BMW M4 GT3: Raffaele Marciello, Maxime Martin, Valentino Rossi
Picture by: SRO
Requested whether or not a GTWCE marketing campaign might increase to incorporate the 5 occasions of the Dash Cup by which Rossi is a two-time race winner, Vosse replied: “That’s all a part of the dialogue and we don’t have a transparent feeling but.”
With the addition of the WEC to his programme this yr, Rossi contested solely two of the Dash weekends, at Manufacturers Hatch courtesy of his love for the circuit and his dwelling race at Misano.
Rossi has unilaterally introduced that he might be driving BMW’s M Hybrid V8 Hypercar class contender on the WEC rookie take a look at in Bahrain on 3 November.
BMW and WRT have but to verify the date of his promised run within the LMDh, although have clarified that it will likely be earlier than the tip of the yr.
Vosse mentioned: “It appears to be like like he’ll drive the prototype earlier than the tip of the yr as we mentioned, and the very best alternative for that appears just like the rookie take a look at.”
Rossi confused that racing the LMDh sooner or later “is just not the aim I’ve set” however hinted at a need to race within the high class of the WEC.
“I’d like to race in Hypercar as a result of it’s the MotoGP of prototypes,” he mentioned. “Possibly sooner or later there might be a spot in Hypercar – let’s see.”
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