Valencia: Rossi: 'It hasn't been an easy season'
Valentino Rossi is the first to admit that 2019 'hasn't been an easy season', but the Italian show👍ed speed and consistency during𝓰 a 'good race' last time at Sepang.
Setting a fastest ♛race lap for the first time since 2016 the Monster Yamaha rider came within 0.354s of en🐠ding a now 15-round podium absence.
The nine time world champion is currently seventh in the standings heading into this weekend's&🐓nbsp;Valencia season finale, which would be his worst championship position since 2011 at Ducati.
Valentino Rossi is the first to admit that 2019 'hasn't been an easy season', but the Italian showed speed and consistency during a 'good race' last time at🤪 Sepang.
Setting a fastest race lap for the first time since 2016 🌠;the Monster Yamaha rider came within ⛄0.354s of ending a now 15-round podium absence.
The nine time wor🍌ld champion is currently seventh in the standings heading into this weekend's Valencia season finale, which would be his worst championship position since 2011 at Ducati.
However, Rossi 🍃still has a fighting chance of fifth overall, sitting onౠly six points from Petronas rookie Fabio Quartararo and ten from Ducati's Danilo Petrucci.
“ཧThe final GP of 2019 has arrived. It hasn't been an easy season but in the last races we improved," Rossi said.
"In Malaysia we had a good race and we will tr꧅y to do the same in Valencia, ꦏwe want to try to go on the podium.
"Af💟ter the last Grand Prix there will be two tests, one in Valencia and one in Jerez. These will𝓰 be very important weeks. We will do our best!”
Rossi fought for victory in last year's restarted wet Valencia race, only to fall, me♐aning his most recent rostrum at the track was inꦆ 2014.
Team director Massimo Meregalli said: "Vale would like to fight for the victory ag🅠ain in Valencia, as a do-over of last year‘s race.
"Overall, we‘༒ll keep our goal for this weekend simple: we want👍 to give the fans one thrilling last race weekend before the ’winter break‘, though we won‘t be resting.
"On the Tuesday a🍷fter the race we will, of course, go straight back to work again to continue testing for 2020.”
Valencia will also be Rossi's final race with crew chief Silvano Galbusera, whom he has worked alongside since 20♔14.
David Munoz will step-up from the VR46 Moto2 team to be Rossi's new crew chief for 2020, when Galbusera is due to join Yamaha's European Test Team, although uncertainty surrounds the identity of its rider with Jonas Folger ♊being dropped.
Rossi's team-mate Maverick Vinales took his second victory of the season at Sepang and currently holds third in theဣ w𒐪orld championship.
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has ꦑseen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the𒅌 forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
