Rossi: Yamaha needs a “miracle” to avoid winless year
Yamaha needs a “miracle” to avoid a winless season in MotoGP this year, Valentino Rossi has said following a tough opening day of practice for the Aragon Grand Prix.

Rossi and his teammate Maverick Vinales ended Friday’s second practice session ninth and 10th fastest, both over a second off the pace set by Honda rider Marc Marquez.
This comes as Yamaha stands on the cusp of its worst-ever losing streak in MotoGP, having matched its previous tally of 22 races with no win last time out at Misano.
But Rossi says there is little hope of the Iwata marque winning any of the final six races this year, let alone at Aragon where it has struggled in recent years.
“It’s my job, so all I can do is try to give the maximum,” said Rossi.
“Barring a miracle, I don’t think we will win a race this year. But we are here to try and at least have some decent races.
“This is the situation: we need to be calm and hope for better in future.”
Explaining his problems in more detail, Rossi said he was having trouble on corner entry, as was the case two weeks earlier at Misano, where he finished a disappointing seventh.
“[At Misano] In FP4 I was P6 or P7, one tenth from the top, and my pace was very strong,” he recalled. “It was more or less the pace of [Andrea] Dovizioso in the race.
“But the next day, in the same conditions, me and Maverick lost 0.6s, 0.7s, more than half a second. This is the problem.
“Here it’s similar, but usually Misano is a good track for us. Here, also the track doesn’t help a lot. But it’s like this. We have to try.”
Vinales came into the Aragon weekend confident off the back of a strong test showing in the last week of August at the Motorland track, but was baffled to find “zero grip” on Friday.
“I think I was trying so much because the feeling after the test was so good and [I was] so confident that today when I found the track was, that feeling that I had, zero grip on the track,” said last year’s Aragon polesitter.
“Honestly was difficult for me, also because I was used to do one line during all tests, and now impossible so I needed to change a little bit the riding style.
“I slide so much on the rear, straight and on banking so I can't push. I am really slow going into the corner, that is the problem.
“The tyres are completely the same than in the test and in the test I had grip, so we need to try to figure out what is going on.”

Maverick Viñales, Yamaha Factory Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / LAT Images

Previous article
MotoGP unveils reduced teams' list for 2019
Next article
Aragon MotoGP: Crutchlow tops FP3, Rossi crashes

About this article
Series | MotoGP |
Event | Aragon GP |
Drivers | Valentino Rossi |
Teams | Yamaha Factory Racing |
Author | Jamie Klein |
Rossi: Yamaha needs a “miracle” to avoid winless year
Trending
Repsol Honda Team - Pol Espargaró Q&A
Repsol Honda Team - Marc Marquez Q&A
Why Alex Marquez doesn't care about 'shutting up' MotoGP critics
Alex Marquez's form was one of MotoGP 2020's biggest surprises and, by firmly stepping out of his six-time world champion brother Marc's shadow, he proved a few people wrong. Not that he cares about this, as he tells Lewis Duncan
How Yamaha's new MotoGP era can unchain Vinales
After the electrifying start to his Yamaha MotoGP career in 2017, Maverick Vinales has struggled for consistency. Many anticipate that the arrival of Fabio Quartararo could spell disaster, but the departure of Valentino Rossi could be just the impetus he needs.
Does KTM really need 'super engine' for MotoGP title challenge?
Fears from rival MotoGP manufacturers that KTM would build a 'super engine' for 2021 have ultimately come to nothing with the revealation that the RC16 hasn't been radically changed over the winter. But does it really need that to win the title?
How Ducati's latest Aussie union can return it to MotoGP glory
Australians on Ducatis is an iconic partnership, the marque's last one yielding its sole MotoGP crown to date. But its latest Aussie union with the often underestimated Jack Miller can end this drought.
The "balls out" battle between MotoGP's true greats
Senna vs Prost is regularly cited as motorsport's greatest rivalry. But it can easily be argued Rainey vs Schwantz can stake that claim. That rivalry was in full swing during the 1991 500cc season, remembered fondly by both stars 30 years on...
The "warrior" MotoGP rookie KTM was right to back
The 2020 MotoGP campaign featured a standout pair of rookies, but one flew under the radar as he adjusted to a shock step-up armed with very little racing experience. However as his veteran team boss explains, the faith shown in him was not misplaced
Why Suzuki's Brivio replacement must come from within
With its charismatic leader Davide Brivio leaving for Formula 1, the Suzuki MotoGP squad he turned into a world championship-winning force in 2020 has a major recruitment headache that it needs to resolve carefully.
Why Alpine's latest signing could be its best hope of F1 glory
The return of Fernando Alonso to the renamed Alpine team is a sure sign of the team's ambition. But its latest appointment from MotoGP could be an even bigger coup as it seeks to end a barren run stretching back to Alonso's 2006 world title