Giacomo Agostini makes an admission about Valentino Rossi

Multiple world motorcycle champion Giacomo Agostini: “Valentino Rossi didn’t ride bikes as powerful as today’s, but he used to put on a show.”

Multiple world champion Giacomo Agostini in an interview with Motorsport spoke about the current moment in MotoGp, which he said is too focused on the development of motorcycles and less on riders: “As there is a lot of technology, the bike becomes very important. If a small detail is missing in the bike, you can be a great champion but it won’t work. It is always easier for others to stay ahead of you. In my time, the wrist movement was very important, the rider was in charge. Now the electronics take over immediately and it no longer depends on the rider.”

“We have to give the riders more power,” Agostini continued. “The show is not necessarily good because the engine has 300 hp. In my time we didn’t have 300 hp, but the show was good. Valentino Rossi didn’t have such powerful bikes in his career, but he made a show. It’s a matter of people, not such a fast bike. Whether you do 2’05” laps or 2’10” laps, it doesn’t matter. You want to see a duel. The 200,000 people in the stands are not sitting with the stopwatch.”

“If we reduce the power a little bit, the bikes also become less dangerous. Riders have to brake hard enough to slow down a 160-kilogram, 300-kilometer-per-hour motorcycle at a normal speed. But in the event of an accident, the motorcycle whizzes by like a bullet. This is very dangerous. If you reduce power, you increase safety and the tire remains better. Who wins then? The better rider.”

Eicma Girls: the photos of Natalia Hoffman
The wonderful Francesca Sofia Novello: the photos
The beauties of Mugello: the photos of the Aprilia umbrellas