This year Valentino Rossi wished his fans a Merry Christmas in person, taking advantage of a live-streaming question and answer session arranged by Dainese and AGV. It was a half hour in which Rossi attempted to respond openly and honestly to questions submitted by his supporters and the general public. Obviously the topic of most interest was next season: "I hope to be competitive again as soon as possible - the Ducati rider said - I'm very curious to ride the new Desmosedici at Sepang, at the end of January. We did a lot of work this season, and we tried to understand the way to improve in several areas. We have many ideas."
The 2012 season will also see the introduction of CRT's, and Valentino is very realistic about this latest development: "It's a difficult period for motorsport in general, and the economic crisis has diminished everyone's resources. The introduction of CRT's was a necessary choice if we want to have more bikes on the grid. Of course I would prefer to race with the most technologically advanced bikes possible, like we have now, but I think the CRT's will be the future of our sport. At the end of the day, it's a good decision. The first season will be hard for them, and there will be a big, maybe too large, gap in their performance compared to the prototypes, but I think they will get better with time."
Many questions focused on the Italian rider's future career plans, and he made it clear he won't be slowing down anytime soon. "I always see myself with a racing helmet on, either on a bike or in a car. I'd like to try some serious rally races at some point." And on a possible move to WSBK? "I don't know if I'll go to Superbike, we need to see what happens in a few years, but I wouldn't mind continuing my career in that series." He said he has no intention of becoming a team manager, "but that could change if my brother (Luca Marini, ed.) wants my help." Valentino was even asked if he would ever race in the famous Isle of Man TT: "I'm really fascinated by the race, and I was a spectator there in 2009, but I don't think I could win it; you need a lot of experience, and for me it's too dangerous."
Away from the track, he again said that his favorite film is The Blues Brothers, where he would have liked to take Dan Aykroyd's place alongside John Belushi. His favorite song is Siamo Solo Noi, by Vasco Rossi, which also happened to be the favorite of Marco Simoncelli. And speaking of the fallen rider, Rossi revealed that he would continue wearing his Sic tribute helmet during the winter test sessions: "I like having something of his with me when I'm out on the track."
The session concluded with questions about his best and worst career moments, which were: "My debut win on the Yamaha at Welkom, and my battles with Stoner at Laguna Seca, and with Lorenzo at Barcelona. The worst was surely my crash at Mugello in 2010." Last but not least, what does he want for Christmas: "A tenth world championship," the same exact thing his fans would like.
source: GP One
