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MotoGP, Rossi: “Fausto Gresini was a reference point in the paddock.”

Valentino: “I remember him when he was racing. As a team manager, he was my great rival in the 250 with Capirossi and in the MotoGP with Gibernau and Melandri.”

MotoGP: Rossi: “Fausto Gresini was a reference point in the paddock.”

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During his first meeting with the press as a Petronas rider, Valentino Rossi wanted to remember Fausto Gresini, who passed away last week due to complications caused by Covid-19.

It was sad and bad news for everyone,” Valentino said. “He was fit and was only sixty. This has to make us realize that the Coronavirus can also affect those who are healthy.

Rossi had known Fausto a long time.

Since I was a child,” he continued. “Through my dad Graziano, I knew all the  riders. I remember when Capirossi was his teammate in the 125. I was already watching races."

Then Gresini and Valentino became rivals.

He was a great opponent, starting from the 250 when, in 1999, I fought against Loris who raced for him, and then again from 2003 onwards in the MotoGP, against Gibernau and Melandri. Fausto was a reference point in the paddock for all the Italian riders. His structure was similar to the Academy. He made many talents grow. And his team headquarters is a few kilometers from ours, so we often spoke.

 

Translated by Leila Myftija

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