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MotoGP, Rossi and Hamilton in Valencia: the "invisible" swap

No photos or videos after the most announced tests in recent years. The mysterious lack of info made the day even more intriguing.

MotoGP: Rossi and Hamilton in Valencia: the "invisible" swap

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The only thing that was certain today was Valentino Rossi on the Formula 1 Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton on the Yamaha MotoGP. The rest is shrouded in mystery. The Valencia circuit was on lock down, as if it were a "top secret" operation instead of a laid back test. No photos, no videos, not even a post on Rossi's or Hamilton's social media profiles, and they usually don't skimp on images of their sports prowess.

That's how Monster, which was the sponsor that organized the event, wanted it, and the two adapted because having fun on the most fascinating and exciting motor vehicles that currently exist was the most important thing for Valentino and Lewis. They'll have time for that routine selfie later.

But after hearing about this event for months, even a blurry photo would have satisfied their fans. Even a grainy video seeing them read the traditional routine "I had fun, it was exciting, I'd like to do it again" statement would have been enough. Something anyone would have said after such a great experience.

Instead.... nothing, zilch. Everything might have been postponed, maybe until tomorrow morning, but it still makes you think of a  "conspiracy". Maybe the sponsors didn't see eye-to-eye on it, or Lewis and Valentino were photographed from the wrong side, even if they did have helmets on, or they went too slow, and you can see this in the photos. Anything goes when there's no one who can say differently.

All in all, though, in an era where information travels at the speed of light through fiber optic cables, not one inkling of info is strange. Especially after an event that was preceded by lots of media hype. It's like being back in the days when photos were taken and you had to wait for them to develop before showing the public.

Guess we'll just have to use our imagination for a little while longer to see the rider struggling with the Mercedes' 1000 hp and the race car driver trying to tame the M1. Our curiosity will then be appeased and our eyes will be filled with all the images we can get our hands on, trying to figure out how many degrees Hamilton was able to bend and whether Valentino was able to countersteer out of a corner. All this for just a few minutes of "wow" time, then back to normal.

After all, using our imagination is actually fun. As Lessing once said: "To await a pleasure is itself a pleasure." Or maybe it's just a marketing strategy... but what could they have known about all this in the 18th century.

Translated by Leila Myftija

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