With a crash in Motegi taking him out the title fight and out of the Japanese GP, Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) is now locked in a fight over second in the Championship with teammate Jorge Lorenzo. Ahead of his nemesis by 14 points heading into Phillip Island, Rossi hopes for good weather at the famously changeable venue, ready to use information from testing with Michelin at the track to its full potential and try and replicate the pace and promise from Motegi – just not the final result. Rossi has a record number of wins at the track across all classes, including his most recent win in 2014.
Valentino Rossi: “The bad thing is that we took zero points in Motegi, but the good thing is that we showed that we are strong. Phillip Island is a fantastic track and a place that I like a lot. We have to try to be fast and strong there too. We already tested there with Michelin, but unfortunately we now go there after a very bad season, our worst season on paper. We hope that the weather conditions won‘t be very bad, because if it‘s cold it can be dangerous. We hope for good weather and we‘ll see.”