Colin Steele McRae, MBE (5 August 1968 – 15 September 2007) was a Scottish rally driver born in Lanark.

The son of five-time British Rally Champion Jimmy McRae and brother of rally driver Alister McRae, Colin McRae was the 1991 and 1992 British Rally Champion and, in 1995, became the first Briton and the youngest to win the World Rally Championship Drivers' title. He still holds that record to this day.

McRae's outstanding performance on the Subaru World Rally Team enabled the team to win the World Rally Championship Constructors' title three times in succession in 1995, 1996 and 1997. After a four year spell with the Ford Motor Co. team, which saw McRae win nine events, he moved to Citroën World Rally Team in 2003 where, despite not winning an event, he helped them win the first of their three consecutive manufacturers' titles. He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire for services to motorsport in 1996. McRae died in a helicopter accident in September 2007 which also claimed the lives of his son and two family friends.

In November 2008 he was posthumously inducted into the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame.

Personal and early life

McRae was married to Alison, and had two children, Hollie and Johnny. McRae moved to the principality of Monaco in 1995, partly through his friendship with David Coulthard. However, as his young family grew up, he spent more time back at his home in Lanarkshire — accepting the higher tax liability of living in Scotland. The couple bought the 17th century Jerviswood House.

Career

Early career

Colin McRae began his competitive career in motorsport riding trial bikes at an early age, despite being more interested in four wheeled machines rather than two wheel bikes. At the age of sixteen, through the Coltness Car Club, McRae discovered autotesting, he soon traded his bike for a Mini Cooper and started competing. McRae was British Rally Champion in both 1991 and 1992, soon graduating to the Subaru factory team at World Rally Championship level. 1992 also saw Colin McRae make his début in the British Touring Car Championship, with a one-off appearance for the Prodrive-run BMW factory team at the Knockhill round. In the second of the two races of the event, McRae collided with Matt Neal. Race officials found McRae to have caused an avoidable collision and subsequently disqualified him.

World Rally Championship

1993–1998: Subaru

rally cars that McRae drove during the 1996 World Rally Championship season.]] On his promotion for 1993, McRae initially drove the Prodrive-built Group A Subaru Legacy alongside Finns Ari Vatanen, Hannu Mikkola and Markku Alén. McRae then won his first WRC rally in the car at that year's Rally New Zealand. It was also the first rally win for the newly formed Subaru World Rally Team, shortly before the Legacy was due to be pensioned off in favour of the new Subaru Impreza 555. Such were the rising fortunes of his young Subaru factory team as they competed against the frontrunning TTE ran Toyotas, aided by the latter team's exclusion from the championship after the 1995 Rally Catalunya where it was discovered that the Japanese team had been using illegal turbochargers, it took only until 1995 for McRae to win the drivers title, which he secured with victory in a straight contest with his double champion team-mate, Carlos Sainz, on the season-ending Rally of Great Britain. Although still a winner with the outfit in individual rallies in succeeding years, including, increasingly, more specialised events such as the Acropolis Rally, Safari Rally and the Tour de Corse, McRae could not better second place in the standings in either 1996 or 1997, on both occasions behind Finland and Mitsubishi Ralliart's Tommi Mäkinen. He did, however help Subaru complete their run of three consecutive manufacturers' titles during this time. In what would turn out to be his final season with the team, in 1998 he won three more rallies and placed third in the standings, as well as winning the Race of Champions in Gran Canaria, the Canary Islands.

1999–2002: Ford

at the 2001 Rally Finland.]] After several years of varying success, McRae switched to the M-Sport-run Ford factory team for 1999, driving the new Ford Focus rally car. The deal saw McRae earning six million pounds over two years, which at the time made him the highest earning rally driver in history. This move was immediately rewarded with two consecutive wins at the Safari Rally and Rally Portugal. A number of shunts and reliability issues for the new car for much of the rest of that season, however, resulted in only sixth place in the championship standings overall. Moreover, a rare personal pointless run had begun for McRae that year which was only to be halted with a podium on the following February's Swedish Rally, the beginning of a recovery which saw McRae victorious in on the asphalt turns of Catalunya and the gravel of Greece, and post 4th in the 2000 overall standings. Midway through the 2000 season, the lacking reliability of the Focus had led to McRae threatening to leave the team if the problems continued. The upturn towards the end of the season resulted in him deciding to renew his contract with Ford for a further two years. McRae's intermittent success with Ford continued into 2001, where after failing to score in any of the first four rounds, including having momentarily led defending winner Tommi Makinen on the stages of the season opening Monte Carlo Rally prior to being forced into retirement, he then went on to score three consecutive victories in Argentina, Cyprus and Greece to tie with Mäkinen at the top of the points table. However, having again led the championship outright entering the final round in Great Britain, McRae once more missed out on a possible second title, crashing out and finishing second in the drivers championship, two points behind Subaru's Richard Burns.

With victory in the Safari Rally in 2002, McRae made the record books as the driver with most event wins in the World Rally Championship. His record has since been broken by Carlos Sainz, Sébastien Loeb and Marcus Grönholm. McRae's contract with Ford came to an end following the 2002 season, and after reportedly asking for wages of five million pounds a year, Ford decided against renewing the contract, reluctant to commit such a high amount of their budget to a drivers salary. The two parties split on amicable terms, with Ford's European director of motorsport Martin Whitaker stating "On behalf of all of us at Ford Motor Company I would like to publicly thank Colin and Nicky for their efforts during the past four years with the Ford team… I wish them both well in the future." McRae said of his time with Ford "It's been a very successful four years, we've achieved a lot of very good results and I'm quite happy that myself and Ford have had a very successful partnership."

2003: Citroën

For 2003, McRae signed for Citroën, a team of winning pedigree due to its successes of the previous year with young Frenchman Sebastien Loeb but otherwise undertaking its first complete campaign at World Rally Championship level. McRae's second place finish on his début in Monte Carlo alongside Loeb and Carlos Sainz whom, aboard the Xsara WRC, helped complete a 1-2-3 finish, transpired to be the finest result he would achieve for the team, for the season was to end with seventh in the drivers' championship, with no victories. Rule changes that were to be brought in for the 2004 season changed the previous practice of having three nominated points-scorers within a team to two. With Loeb partway through a multiple year contract, this meant the Citroën factory team, under Guy Frequelin's leadership, were forced to choose between dropping McRae or Sainz. With Sainz being the more successful of the two during the 2003 season, it was McRae who had to look elsewhere for 2004. David Richards, McRae's former boss at Subaru, who had by now taken over WRC's commercial rights holders ISC and worried that the loss of a character like McRae would damage his ability to market the sport, set about trying to help McRae find a drive for 2004. McRae was unable to find a team, and for the first time in over ten years he would not be competing in the World Rally Championship.

Later career

on the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff super special stage of the 2005 Rally GB.]] As the only other potential alternative suitors, Subaru instead eventually chose Mikko Hirvonen to partner Petter Solberg, McRae found himself without a drive for the 2004 season. He instead pursued other interests, including competing in the Dakar Rally and the 24 Hours of Le Mans(see below).

In 2004 and 2005 McRae represented Great Britain in the Race of Champions alongside Formula One driver and fellow Scot, David Coulthard. For the 2006 event England and Scotland entered separate teams with McRae and Coulthard re-uniting to represent Scotland.

McRae then returned to the series for one off drives for Skoda on the 2005 Rally GB and Rally Australia, respectively finishing seventh and retiring due to a clutch problem on the final leg of the rally, the latter dashing hopes for what may otherwise have been only the team's second ever podium place after the 2001 Safari Rally.

On 5 August 2006, McRae competed for Subaru in the first live televised American rally in Los Angeles as part of the X-Games. McRae rolled the car on the penultimate corner after landing awkwardly from a jump, which damaged the front bumper and left front tyre. Despite this, McRae kept the car running and continued on to the finish, his time only 0.13 seconds slower than eventual winner Travis Pastrana. McRae was, though, to have one more opportunity at world championship level: he was unexpectedly entered for his final rally by semi-works Kronos Citroën at Rally Turkey in September, where he replaced Sébastien Loeb while the Frenchman recovered from an injury he sustained in a cycling accident immediately prior to the event. A final-stage alternator problem consigned him and returning co-driver Nicky Grist, to a final placing outside the top ten. -GTS Maranello driven by McRae at the 2004 24 Hours of Le Mans]]

McRae’s competitive spirit also led him to compete in racing series other than the WRC. In September 2002 he tried his hand at oval racing when he took part in the Ascar (UK version of NASCAR) race at the Rockingham Motor Speedway, Northamptonshire; eventually finishing in sixth place.

McRae rejoined Prodrive for the 2004 24 Hours of Le Mans where he took third place in the GTS class, and ninth position overall in a Ferrari 550-GTS Maranello partnering Darren Turner and Rickard Rydell. Fellow countryman, and Le Mans winner Allan McNish commented that "Colin has adapted far better than people expected" to endurance sportscar racing.

McRae, made his debut on the gruelling Dakar Rally Raid with Nissan in January 2004, and impressed the team by scoring two stage wins on his way to a memorable finish on the gruelling trans-Sahara event. He returned to the Dakar in 2005 and was fastest on two of the first three stages in Morocco, before crashing out of the rally towards the end of stage six.

In August 2007, McRae claimed to still be working on finding a seat for the 2008 WRC season, stating that "if it doesn't happen next year, then I won't (return) because you can only be out of something at that level for so long."

Colin McRae Rally

Codemasters released the first Colin McRae Rally video game in 1998. Version 2, known as Colin McRae 2.0, was released in the year 2000, for Sony's PlayStation and for the PC; it was also ported to the Game Boy Advance in 2002. A third version found a wide audience on the PC and Xbox. Versions 04 and 2005 arrived in 2004 on all major platforms. 2005 was also remade for Sony's PSP and Nokia's N-Gage. was the title for the next instalment of the series, which launched in 2007 for the PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The PlayStation 3 edition was released in the UK on 14 September, the day before McRae's death. A special edition for mobile phones will also be available from Codemasters Mobile. was released on the Xbox 360 and the PS3 on 11 September 2009, the PC version was released on 8 December 2009.

Colin McRae R4

Colin McRae chose the 2006 Goodwood Festival of Speed to unveil the McRae R4, which had been conceived at the beginning of 2005. The intention was to make a cheaper alternative to WRCs (World Rally Cars) with significantly lower running costs. The McRae R4 was designed for use in rallying, rally cross, circuit racing and ice racing events, with the possibility of a one-make race series.

Designed by Colin McRae and Dave Plant and built by DJM Race Preparation, the McRae R4’s chassis is based on a steel safety cage with carbon panelling front and rear, and a steel-covered cockpit area. Suspension consists of twin wishbones with Proflex dampers. The body styling has been done by Keith Burden and Tom Webster. It appears that some components of the vehicle have been taken from existing production cars, the doorline in particular appears very close to that of the Ford Ka.

The engine is a naturally-aspirated 4 cylinder, 2.5 litre Millington Diamond Engine producing 350 BHP. Transmission is via a six-speed gearbox, manual or semi-auto, and by mechanical front and rear differentials with the option of mechanical or active central differential. The car can be produced in either 2 or 4 wheel drive formats.

Alison McRae has said that she would like production of the car to continue following Colin's death.

The R4 appears in Codemasters titles DiRT and DiRT 2

Death

McRae died on 15 September 2007 when his helicopter, a Eurocopter AS350, crashed 1 mile north of Lanark, Scotland, close to the McRae family home. McRae was piloting the helicopter at the time of the crash. McRae's five year old son Johnny, and two family friends, Graeme Duncan and Johnny's six year old friend Ben Porcelli, also died in the crash. McRae's previously active website, ColinMcRae.com, was later replaced with a memorial screen stating a few details about the crash, and then with a short statement released on behalf of McRae's father, Jimmy, and later a book of condolences.

A "Celebration of Life" service took place at St Nicholas Church in Lanark on Sunday 30 September at 4pm. Images from McRae's career and personal life were displayed on large video screens outside the church. Around 700 mourners filled the church, with crowds of up to 15,000 outside. Shortly before 4pm, a lone bagpiper played "Flower of Scotland" as the family arrived at the church. The service was conducted by the Rev Alison Meikle, who said "Two weeks ago Lanark was struck by silence. A terrible silence bought at an enormous price. However, in our tears love is stronger than death." Later, the Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton song "Islands in the Stream", a favourite of Johnny's, was played. Friends of the pair shared poems and anecdotes from the McRaes' lives. After the service, Colin McRae's widow, brother and father bowed and applauded the crowds who had gathered outside to pay tribute to the McRaes.

Reaction

.]] McRae's death was met by much grief from former colleagues, rivals and fans alike. Formula One driver David Coulthard, a good friend of McRae, who was due to represent Scotland along with him in the Race of Champions at Wembley Stadium on 16 December, described him as "an understated yet fantastically talented individual", he also announced that he would race the 2007 Japanese Grand Prix with a helmet paint design similar to that of McRae's as a tribute. During the finale of the 2007 Scottish Rally Championship, the "Colin McRae Forest Stages" held in Perth in September 2007, there was no number 1 car as McRae had been due to drive the course car on the event. Instead, his car was parked at the starting point of the rally, where fans were able to sign a book of condolences.

Following his win at the Brands Hatch meeting of the 2007 World Touring Car Championship season, Andy Priaulx dedicated it to McRae, commenting that his death "shows how fragile life can be". McRae's former rival, four-time World Rally Champion Tommi Mäkinen commented the helicopter accident as terrifying news, and described McRae as "a pleasant fellow and a tough rival". Valentino Rossi, who was taught the basics of driving a rally car by McRae, said he was shocked and saddened by the sudden departure of the former World Rally Champion.

As a mark of respect for McRae, the Swedish Rally organisers set up an award for the longest jump over a crest on the Vargåsen stage of the rally. The inaugural winner of the award, named Colin's Crest, was Ford's United Arab Emirates driver Khalid al-Qassimi who recorded a distance of 30 m.

, driving a Porsche 911 at the 2008 Colin McRae Forest Stages.]] On 27 September 2008 the Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally took place in Perth, Scotland. An enhanced entry list of several former big name rally drivers took part in memory of Colin. The impressive entry list included ex-World Championship drivers Hannu Mikkola, Ari Vatanen (partnered by his 1981 WRC winning co-driver David Richards), Björn Waldegård, Stig Blomqvist, Malcolm Wilson, Russell Brookes, Jimmy McRae, Andrew Cowan and Louise Aitken-Walker, many competing in their original cars. A handful of current WRC drivers also took part including Matthew Wilson, Kris Meeke and Travis Pastrana. The event was deemed a great success, attracting record spectator numbers to the Perthshire forests. Outright winner was Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team driver Matthew Wilson in a Ford Focus WRC. Fittingly, Colin's brother Alister McRae won the classic category.

In video game there is a race series named "Colin McRae Challenge" that is dedicated to him. Winning the race unlocks a video that is a tribute to him.

Investigation

After the crash, an investigative team from the UK Department for Transport Air Accidents Investigation Branch attended the scene in co-operation with Strathclyde Police. The wreckage of the helicopter was removed to Farnborough for further forensic investigation. Pilots operate under strict regulations, and are expected in the case of helicopters under CAA rules to undertake a competency test every year, and renew their licenses every five years — not to do so is illegal. It later emerged that McRae had not undertaken a competency check as required in March 2006, and that effectively his license had expired in February 2005. A CAA spokesman commented "The investigators must determine why he (McRae) hasn't kept up to date with his documentation. There is no suggestion that Mr McRae was not a competent pilot.”

The final report into the accident was published on 12 February 2009. In it, the AAIB did not reach a definite conclusion as to the cause of the accident, stating instead that "the helicopter crashed in a wooded valley while manoeuvring at high speed and low height. It was intact prior to impact, and the available evidence indicated that the engine was delivering power. The cause of the accident was not positively determined. Although no technical reason was found to explain the accident, a technical fault could not be ruled out entirely. However, it is more likely that the pilot attempted a turning manoeuvre at low height, during which the helicopter deviated from his intended flight path; whether due to the pilot encountering handling difficulties, misjudgement, spatial disorientation, distraction or a combination of such events. There were indications that the pilot had started a recovery but, with insufficient height in which to complete it, the helicopter struck trees in the valley and crashed, killing all four occupants."

Complete WRC results

{| class="wikitable" border="1" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" |- ! Year ! Entrant ! Car ! 1 ! 2 ! 3 ! 4 ! 5 ! 6 ! 7 ! 8 ! 9 ! 10 ! 11 ! 12 ! 13 ! 14 ! 15 ! 16 ! WDC ! Points |- |rowspan="2"| 1987 ! Colin McRae ! Vauxhall Nova | MON |bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| SWE
36 | POR | KEN | FRA | GRC | USA | NZL | ARG | FIN | CIV | ITA | | | | !rowspan="2"| — !rowspan="2"| 0 |- ! British Junior Rally Team ! Vauxhall Nova | | | | | | | | | | | | |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | | |- | 1988 ! Peugeot Talbot Sport ! Peugeot 205 GTI | MON | SWE | POR | KEN | FRA | GRC | USA | NZL | ARG | FIN | CIV | ITA |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | | ! — ! 0 |- | rowspan="3"| 1989 ! Colin McRae ! Ford Sierra XR 4x4 |bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| SWE
15 | MON | POR | KEN | FRA | GRC | | ARG | FIN | AUS | ITA | CIV | | | | !rowspan="3" | 34th !rowspan="3" | 8 |- ! Gary Smith Motorsport ! Ford Sierra RS Cosworth | | | | | | |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| NZL
5 | | | | | | | | | |- ! R.E.D. ! Ford Sierra RS Cosworth | | | | | | | | | | | | |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | | |- | 1990 ! Shell UK Oil ! Ford Sierra RS Cosworth 4x4 | MON | POR | KEN | FRA | GRC | NZL | ARG | FIN | AUS | ITA | CIV |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GBR
6 | | | | !bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| 34th !bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| 6 |- | 1991 ! Subaru Rally Team Europe ! Subaru Legacy RS | MON | SWE | POR | KEN | FRA | GRC | NZL | ARG | FIN | AUS | ITA | CIV | ESP |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | !bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| — !bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| 0 |- | 1992 ! Subaru Rally Team Europe ! Subaru Legacy RS | MON |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| SWE
2 | POR | KEN | FRA |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GRC
4 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| NZL
Ret | ARG |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| FIN
8 | AUS | ITA | CIV | ESP |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GBR
6 | | !bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| 8th !bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| 34 |- | rowspan=2|1993 ! 555 Subaru World Rally Team ! Subaru Legacy RS | MON |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| SWE
3 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| POR
7 | |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| FRA
5 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GRC
Ret | ARG |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| NZL
1 | FIN |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| AUS
6 | ITA | ESP |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | | !rowspan=2| 5th !rowspan=2| 50 |- ! Subaru M.S.G. ! Subaru Vivio Sedan 4WD | | | |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| KEN
Ret | | | | | | | | | | | | |- | 1994 ! 555 Subaru World Rally Team ! Subaru Impreza 555 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| MON
10 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| POR
Ret | KEN |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FRA
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GRC
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ARG
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| NZL
1 | FIN |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| ITA
5 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GBR
1 | | | | | | ! 4th ! 49 |- | 1995 ! 555 Subaru World Rally Team ! Subaru Impreza 555 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| MON
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| SWE
Ret |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| POR
3 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| FRA
5 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| NZL
1 |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| AUS
2 |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| ESP
2 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GBR
1 | | | | | | | | |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| 1st |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| 90 |- | 1996 ! 555 Subaru World Rally Team ! Subaru Impreza 555 |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| SWE
3 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| KEN
4 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| IDN
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GRC
1 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ARG
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FIN
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| AUS
4 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| ITA
1 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| ESP
1 | | | | | | | |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| 2nd |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| 92 |- | 1997 ! 555 Subaru World Rally Team ! Subaru Impreza WRC 97 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| MON
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| SWE
4 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| KEN
1 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| POR
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| ESP
4 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| FRA
1 |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| ARG
2 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GRC
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| NZL
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FIN
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| IDN
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| ITA
1 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| AUS
1 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GBR
1 | | |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| 2nd |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| 62 |- | 1998 ! 555 Subaru World Rally Team ! Subaru Impreza WRC 98 |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| MON
3 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| SWE
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| KEN
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| POR
1 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ESP
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| FRA
1 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| ARG
5 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GRC
1 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| NZL
5 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FIN
Ret |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| ITA
3 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| AUS
4 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | | |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| 3rd |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| 45 |- | 1999 ! Ford Motor Co ! Ford Focus WRC |bgcolor="#000000" style="color: #ffffff"| MON
DSQ |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| SWE
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| KEN
1 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| POR
1 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ESP
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| FRA
4 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ARG
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GRC
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| NZL
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FIN
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| CHN
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ITA
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| AUS
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | ! 6th ! 23 |- | 2000 ! Ford Motor Co ! Ford Focus RS WRC 00 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| MON
Ret |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| SWE
3 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| KEN
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| POR
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| ESP
1 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ARG
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GRC
1 |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| NZL
2 |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| FIN
2 |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| CYP
2 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FRA
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| ITA
6 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| AUS
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | ! 4th ! 43 |- | 2001 ! Ford Motor Co ! Ford Focus RS WRC 01 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| MON
Ret |bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| SWE
9 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| POR
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ESP
Ret |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| ARG
1 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| CYP
1 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GRC
1 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| KEN
Ret |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| FIN
3 |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| NZL
2 |bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| ITA
8 |bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| FRA
11 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| AUS
5 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| GBR
Ret | | |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| 2nd |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| 42 |- | 2002 ! Ford Motor Co ! Ford Focus RS WRC 02 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| MON
4 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| SWE
6 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FRA
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| ESP
6 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| CYP
6 |bgcolor="#FFDF9F"| ARG
3 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| GRC
1 |bgcolor="#FFFFBF"| KEN
1 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FIN
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GER
4 |bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| ITA
8 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| NZL
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| AUS
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GBR
5 | | ! 4th ! 35 |- | 2003 ! Citroën Total ! Citroën Xsara WRC |bgcolor="#DFDFDF"| MON
2 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| SWE
5 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| TUR
4 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| NZL
Ret |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| ARG
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GRC
8 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| CYP
4 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GER
4 |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| FIN
Ret |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| AUS
4 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| ITA
6 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| FRA
5 |bgcolor="#CFCFFF"| ESP
9 |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GBR
4 | | ! 7th ! 45 |- | 2005 ! Škoda Motorsport ! Škoda Fabia WRC | MON | SWE | MEX | NZL | ITA | CYP | TUR | GRC | ARG | FIN | GER |bgcolor="#DFFFDF"| GBR
7 | JPN | FRA | ESP |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| AUS
Ret ! 22nd ! 2 |- | 2006 ! Kronos Citroën World Rally Team ! Citroën Xsara WRC | MON | SWE | MEX | ESP | FRA | ARG | ITA | GRC | GER | FIN | JPN | CYP |bgcolor="#EFCFFF"| TUR
Ret | AUS | NZL | GBR ! — ! 0 |}

{|class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |- !colspan="5"|World Rally Championship victories |- !  #  ! Event ! Season ! Co-driver ! Car |- | 1 | 23rd Rothmans Rally of New Zealand | 1993 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Legacy RS |- | 2 | 24th Rothmans Rally of New Zealand | 1994 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Impreza 555 |- | 3 | 50th Network Q Rally | 1994 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Impreza 555 |- | 4 | 25th Smokefree Rally New Zealand | 1995 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Impreza 555 |- | 5 | 51st Network Q Rally | 1995 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Impreza 555 |- | 6 | 43rd Acropolis Rally of Greece | 1996 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Impreza 555 |- | 7 | 38° Rallye Sanremo — Rallye d'Italia | 1996 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Impreza 555 |- | 8 | 32° Rallye Catalunya-Costa Brava (Rallye de España) | 1996 | Derek Ringer | Subaru Impreza 555 |- | 9 | 45th Safari Rally Kenya | 1997 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 10 | 41ème Tour de Corse — Rallye de France | 1997 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 11 | 39° Rallye Sanremo — Rallye d'Italia | 1997 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 12 | 10th API Rally Australia | 1997 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 13 | 53rd Network Q Rally | 1997 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 14 | 31° TAP Rallye de Portugal | 1998 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 15 | 42ème Tour de Corse — Rallye de France | 1998 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 16 | 45th Acropolis Rally of Greece | 1998 | Nicky Grist | Subaru Impreza WRC |- | 17 | 47th Safari Rally Kenya | 1999 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 18 | 32° TAP Rallye de Portugal | 1999 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 19 | 36° Rallye Catalunya-Costa Brava (Rallye de España) | 2000 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 20 | 47th Acropolis Rally | 2000 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 21 | 21° Rally Argentina | 2001 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 22 | 29th Cyprus Rally | 2001 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 23 | 48th Acropolis Rally | 2001 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 24 | 49th Acropolis Rally | 2002 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |- | 25 | 50th Inmarsat Safari Rally | 2002 | Nicky Grist | Ford Focus WRC |}

References

Journals

Evans, David (20 September 2007) Autosport,"McRae Tribute", Vol. 189, No. 12, pp. 6–11, Haymarket Publications.

Notes

External links

Official site

Official sportswear brand

Rallybase stats page

WRC Archive stats page

Obituary in The Times

Obituary and Memorial

McRae R4

McRae Dakar Buggy

Category:1968 births Category:2007 deaths Category:24 Hours of Le Mans drivers Category:Accidental deaths in Scotland Category:Aviators killed in aircraft crashes in the United Kingdom Category:British Touring Car Championship drivers Category:Members of the Order of the British Empire Category:People from Lanark Category:Scottish aviators Category:Scottish rally drivers Category:Scottish racecar drivers Category:Scottish Sports Hall of Fame inductees Category:Segrave Trophy recipients Category:Victims of helicopter accidents or incidents Category:World Rally Champions Category:World Rally Championship drivers Category:World Rally Championship people Category:X-Games athletes

Caption	Rossi at the 2010 Qatar Grand Prix
Name	Valentino Rossi
Nationality	Italian
Birth date	February 16, 1979
Birth place	Urbino, Italy
Current team	Ducati Marlboro Team
Bike number	46
Website	valentinorossi.com
Motogp last season	2010
Motogp last position	3rd (233 pts)
Motogp active years	–present
Motogp championships	7 (, , , , , , )
Motogp manufacturers	Honda (–) Yamaha (–) Ducati (–present)
Motogp race starts	181
Motogp race wins	79
Motogp podiums	138
Motogp poles	49
Motogp fastest laps	65
Motogp total points	3317
250 active years	–
250 championships	1 ()
250 manufacturers	Aprilia
250 race starts	30
250 race wins	14
250 podiums	21
250 poles	5
250 fastest laps	11
250 total points	510
125 active years	–
125 championships	1 ()
125 manufacturers	Aprilia
125 race starts	30
125 race wins	12
125 podiums	15
125 poles	5
125 fastest laps	9
125 total points	432

Valentino Rossi, (born February 16, 1979 in Urbino), is an Italian professional motorcycle racer and multiple MotoGP World Champion. He is one of the most successful motorcycle racers of all time, with nine Grand Prix World Championships to his name – a record seven of which are in the premier class.

Following his father, Graziano Rossi, Rossi started racing in Grand Prix in 1996 for Aprilia in the 125cc category and won his first World Championship the following year. From there, he moved up to the 250cc category with Aprilia and won the 250cc World Championship in 1999. He won the 500cc World Championship with Honda in 2001, the MotoGP World Championships (also with Honda) in 2002 and 2003, and continued his streak of back-to-back championships by winning the 2004 and 2005 titles after leaving Honda to join Yamaha, before regaining the title in 2008 and retaining it in 2009. He will leave Yamaha to join Ducati for the season.

Rossi is first in all time 500 cc/MotoGP race wins standings, with 79 victories, and second in all time overall wins standings with 105 race wins (behind Giacomo Agostini with 122).

The early years

Valentino Rossi was born in Urbino, and he was still a child when the family moved to Tavullia. Son of Graziano Rossi, a former motorcycle racer, he first began riding at a very young age. Rossi's first racing love was go-karts. Fuelled by his mother, Stefania's, concern for her son's safety, Graziano purchased a go-kart as substitute for the bike. However, the Rossi family trait of perpetually wanting to go faster prompted a redesign; Graziano replaced the 60cc motor with a 100cc national kart motor for his then 5-year-old son.

Rossi won the regional kart championship in 1990. After this he took up minimoto and before the end of 1991 had won numerous regional races. He finished ninth that race weekend. who crashed but continued and took the second place) and at a rain-shortened race in Indianapolis, meant that Rossi has won in every current circuit in the calendar. His win in Motegi was his first victory there on a MotoGP bike. The victory at Motegi won Rossi his first 800cc MotoGP title, his sixth in premier category, and eighth overall.

On June 8, 2009, Valentino Rossi rode a Yamaha around the famous Isle of Man TT Course in an exhibition lap along-side fellow Italian motorcycle legend Giacomo Agostini, in what was called 'The Lap of the Gods'.

in Assen.]] The 2009 season saw Rossi win 6 races to win his 9th championship title, beating his team-mate Jorge Lorenzo into second place by 45 points. 6 wins was the lowest number of wins Rossi has had in a championship winning season; the previous lowest was 9 in 1999 in the 250 cc class and 2003, 2004 and 2008 in MotoGP.

His victory at the 2009 Dutch TT in Assen was Rossi's 100th victory, becoming only the second rider in motorcycle grand prix history to reach 100 wins.

The 2010 season began with Rossi topping most of all pre-season testing sessions and took victory in the first race of the season in Qatar, after early leader Casey Stoner crashed out. Rossi injured his shoulder and back while training on a motocross bike after the Japanese Grand Prix was postponed to October due to the disruption to air travel after the second eruption of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland. The following two rounds Rossi was beaten by team-mate Lorenzo with Rossi complaining about shoulder pain. The injury was not taken seriously initially and was expected to cure in a few weeks, but did not turn out as expected and the ligament tear in the shoulder failed to sufficiently heal.

On 5 June 2010 at his home race at Mugello, Rossi crashed in the second free practice session, around the Biondetti corner, at around . Rossi suffered a displaced compound fracture of his right tibia, and after post-surgical care close to his home in the hospital at Cattolica, it was diagnosed that he was likely to be out for most of the season. It was the first time that Rossi had missed a race in his Grand Prix career. However ahead of the British Grand Prix, Suzi Perry reported in her Daily Telegraph column that Rossi was planning on making a comeback at Brno. This was confirmed a week later by Rossi himself. On 7 July, Rossi rode at Misano on a Superbike World Championship-specification Yamaha YZF-R1 provided by the Yamaha World Superbike Team to test his leg's recovery. He completed 26 laps during two runs, with a best lap time that was around two seconds off the pace of recent World Superbike times at the circuit. At the conclusion of the session, Rossi complained of discomfort, reporting pain in both his leg and his shoulder. On 12 July, Rossi took part in another test at Brno, after which Rossi stated he was happier and a lot more in form. After an observation by the Chief Medical Officer on the Thursday before the weekend, Rossi made his return at the German Grand Prix, two rounds earlier than predicted and only 41 days after the accident. He managed to end the race in fourth place after a battle with Casey Stoner for third.

MotoGP: Ducati

On 15 August 2010, after the Brno race, Rossi confirmed he would ride for Ducati Corse, signing a two year deal starting in . making his first appearance since , on an Italian motorcycle.

Competition

Earlier in his career Max Biaggi was considered Rossi's main rival. At one time his website didn't even have Max's name; instead a glaring "XXX XXXXXX" was placed wherever his name should have appeared. Although they hadn't even raced against each other until 2000, the rivalry between the two had been growing since the mid-'90s. The rivalry died down as Rossi's consecutive World Championships and Biaggi's struggle to find support and a consistent rhythm with his races.

In his autobiography "What If I Had Never Tried It", Rossi makes a number of claims about the reasons for his rivalry with Biaggi, and some of the incidents which led to its escalation. The rivalry was also featured in the 2003 documentary film, Faster.

Rossi's closest rival in the 2003 and 2004 seasons was Sete Gibernau, riding with Team Gresini's Movistar Honda team on a satellite RC211V in 2004 and then on an all but in name factory RC211V, which Gibernau helped to develop, in 2005. Initially they were quite friendly in the paddock and off – Gibernau partied on occasions with Rossi at the Italian's Ibiza villa – but a souring in their relationship began in the 2004 season and culminated in the "Qatar Incident" that same season when Rossi's team was penalized for "cleaning" his grid position to aid in traction, along with Honda Pons' Max Biaggi, and both riders were subsequently forced to start from the back of the grid. A number of teams, including Gibernau's Team Gresini and the official Repsol Honda factory team, appealed successfully to race direction for Rossi to be sanctioned. Rossi and his chief mechanic, Jeremy Burgess, insisted that they were doing nothing more than what many others had done before when faced with a dirty track

Since then the two have not spoken and Rossi seemed to resolve to use the incident to apply psychological pressure on Gibernau. He is said to have sworn that after the Qatar race, which Gibernau won while Rossi crashed out after rising to 6th position, he would do everything to make sure that Gibernau never stood on the highest step of the podium again. Gibernau retired from Grand Prix racing after an unsuccessful, injury blighted 2006 season with Ducati and he never won another race after Qatar, prompting some in the Spanish and Italian motorcycle racing media to explain this fact by way of reference to the "Qatar curse." But he returned at the end of 2008, after tests on the 2008 Ducati convinced him that he could still be competitive in MotoGP, and signed to ride a Ducati in 2009.

In 2007, Casey Stoner emerged as a rival for Rossi. Coupled with a Ducati, the young Australian won the first race of the year, followed by many more victories resulting in his claiming of the 2007 MotoGP World Championship title. Stoner's and Rossi's rivalry came to a dramatic climax at Laguna Seca in 2008. After numerous position changes, Rossi overtook Stoner down the corkscrew. The bold move caused Rossi to run wide into the gravel, and his rejoining the track came close to causing a collision between the two riders. A few laps later Stoner went into the gravel on the slow entry into turn 11, yet picked up the bike to finish second while Rossi took the win. After this, Casey Stoner made the comment 'I have lost respect for one of the greatest riders in history'. For the comment, Stoner apologised to Rossi at the next race.

In 2008, Jorge Lorenzo joined Rossi in the factory Yamaha Motor Racing team, which started a new rivalry. After some great battles in 2008 and 2009 where Lorenzo went toe to toe with Rossi, 2010 saw Lorenzo dominate throughout the season to win the championship by amassing the highest points tally in history, scoring 383 points.

Nicknames

Valentino Rossi has had numerous nicknames during his racing career. His first prominent nickname was "Rossifumi." Rossi explained the etymology of this nickname as a reference and tribute to fellow rider Norifumi Abe.

His next nickname appeared some time around his days racing in the 250 cc World Championship. The nickname "Valentinik" was a reference to the Italian Donald Duck superhero, "Paperinik".

Since his dominance in 500 cc and MotoGP, Rossi has used the nickname "The Doctor." This has been attributed to his "cold and clinical dismantling of his opponents" as well as his cool and calm composure in racing compared to his frenetic days in 125 cc and 250 cc where his performance was erratic and dangerous, resulting in numerous crashes. Two theories prevail as to why Rossi uses "The Doctor." One is that Rossi adopted the nickname upon having earned a degree, which in Italy entitles one to use the title "Doctor". Another, as spoken by Graziano himself, "The Doctor because, I don't think there is a particular reason, but it's beautiful, and is important, The Doctor. And in Italy, The Doctor is a name you give to someone for respect, it's very important, The Doctor... important". Rossi often jokes, however, that the name arrived because in Italy, Rossi is a common surname for Doctors.

He has always raced with the number #46 in his motorcycle grand prix career. Rossi has stated that the original inspiration for this choice of number was the Japanese "wild card" racer Norifumi Abe whom he saw on television speeding past much more seasoned riders in a wet race. He later found out that it was the number his father had raced with in the first of his 3 grand prix career wins, in 1979, in Yugoslavia, on a 250c Morbidelli. Typically, a World Championship winner is awarded the #1 sticker for the next season. However, in a homage to Barry Sheene, who was the first rider of the modern era to keep the same number (#7), Rossi has stayed with the now-famous #46 throughout his career, though he has worn the #1 on the shoulder of his racing leathers.

The text on his helmet refers to the name of his group of friends: "The Tribe of the Chihuahua," and the letters WLF on his leathers stand for "Viva La Figa," Italian for "Long Live Pussy." He has so far escaped any sanctions or ultimatums that he remove the letters because the "W" in "WLF" represents the two "V"s in "ViVa". Equally obvious is his success at escaping any disciplinary action from the FIM or Dorna for having the letters so brazenly on the front neck area of his leathers. He traditionally also incorporates his favorite color (fluorescent yellow) into his leather designs.

Fellow motorcycle racer and former team mate Colin Edwards, as well as some TV journalists, have often referred to him as 'the GOAT' (Greatest of all Time).

Post MotoGP plans

Rossi tested the Ferrari Formula 1 car in 2006 on January 31, February 1, and February 2 at Valencia. The first test saw Rossi spin out on the damp track into the gravel trap, ending his day. On the second day, he posted the ninth fastest time of fifteen drivers, approximately one second behind Michael Schumacher, who himself was third fastest. Rossi lapped faster than seasoned drivers Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber and David Coulthard and Toyota F1's Jarno Trulli. On the final day of testing, Rossi was just a little more than a half second behind Schumacher's best time. Schumacher hailed Rossi as having immense talent and said he would be perfectly capable of moving to Formula One and being competitive immediately.

On May 24, 2006, Rossi announced that he would be staying in MotoGP until he felt his work on the motorbike was "finished." Ferrari driver Schumacher said that he felt "saddened" by Rossi's decision but supported it. Rossi subsequently signed a new contract with Yamaha for the 2007 and 2008 seasons, then for 2009 and 2010.

Beyond his interest in F1, Rossi's strong passion is for rallying. In Rossi's youth one of his heroes was WRC Champion Colin McRae. Rally legend McRae taught Rossi the basics of driving a rally car. The two competed against each other at Monza in 2005, with McRae driving a Skoda Fabia WRC and Rossi winning in a Subaru Impreza WRC. His first official foray into rallying came in 2002 at WRC Rally Great Britain, in which he crashed out on the second stage (first non-superspecial stage).

On October 11, 2006 it was announced that Rossi would enter that year's Rally New Zealand, a WRC event which was to run from November 17–19. He competed in a Subaru WRC car finishing 11th out of 39. On November 26, 2006 Rossi also won the annual Monza Rally driving a Ford Focus WRC car. He beat the 2005 rally victor Rinaldo Capello by 24 seconds, winning five of the seven stages on his way. He also managed to outpace former WRC Champion Didier Auriol by seven seconds in the head-to-head Master Show final. Rossi also announced at the 2006 Monza rally, that he would be entering the 2007 Rally of Great Britain, however, he later opted out. At the 2007 Monza Rally, Rossi again took first place.

Rossi had been linked with a move to both Formula One and the World Rally Championship in 2007, having tested for Ferrari and competed in a number of rally events.

But Rossi decided to remain in Moto-GP; "I have a contract with Yamaha until 2008," said Rossi. "When that finishes then we will see. What I am sure about is that I will ride until I'm 31 or 32 at most. I will look for new stimuli in the next few seasons, but for now I am fully motivated". Rossi signed a new two year contract confirming he will be at Yamaha until 2010. He originally planned to use the Impreza WRC2008 during his participation in the Rally GB in December 2008, but decided to drive a Ford Focus WRC instead. He finished the rally in 12th place, 13 minutes and 20.4 seconds behind eventual winner Sebastian Loeb.

In January 2010, Rossi said that when he retired from motorcycle racing, he hoped to move into rallying. "There are not many changes in a man's body between 22 and 34 so I still have some time left. I would consider shifting to cars, probably rallying, after that before I finally decide to take it easy … I know F1 would've been easier but by the time I finish MotoGP, I will be too old for F1." Stefano Domenicali, Ferrari's Formula One Team principal, however, reasserted his wish to have a third Ferrari on the F1 grid driven by Rossi, whilst confirming that Rossi would test an older Ferrari F1 car on 21 and 22 January 2010.

In March 2010, the Italian minister Franco Frattini government awarded Rossi the first Winning Italy Award for the image he portrays of his country on an international level.

Helmets

Valentino Rossi has gone through numerous helmet designs throughout his career, most featuring the Sun & Moon motif, signifying (according to Rossi) the two sides of his personality. The artist of Rossi's current helmet graphics is Aldo Drudi.

Pre-ride rituals

.]] Rossi is very superstitious and is renowned for his pre-ride rituals. On a race day, he will always watch the beginning of the 125cc race to see how long the starting lights remain lit before going out at the start of the race. Prior to riding (whether racing, qualifying, or practice), he will start his personal ritual by stopping about 2 metres from his bike, bending over and reaching for his boots. Then, when arriving at his bike, he will crouch down and hold the right-side foot-peg, with his head bowed. In an interview, Rossi said "It’s just a moment to focus and ‘talk’ to my bike, like moving from one place to the next." He adjusts the fit of his leathers by standing straight up on the foot-pegs, whilst riding down the pit-lane before the start of race or practice. He also revealed in an interview with MotoGP.com that he always puts one boot on before the other, one glove on before the other, and he always gets on the bike the same way. He also gets off the bike in the same way, swinging his right leg over the front of the bike.

Personal life

After leaving the family home in Tavullia, he moved to Milan, before taking up residency in London, England during his period with Honda. During this time he acquired a villa in Ibiza which he still owns, and following the tax case has now returned to his main residence to live close to his family in Italy.

Reputed earnings

According to Sports Illustrated, Rossi is one of the highest earning sports personalities in the world, having earned an estimated $34 million in 2007. In 2009 Forbes ranked Rossi as number nine among the world's highest-paid athletes having earned an estimated $35 million in the past year.

Tax avoidance case

In 2007, the Italian tax authorities declared Rossi was being investigated for suspected tax evasion. Having previously unsuccessfully investigated Rossi for tax evasion in 2002, the authorities announced they were investigating Rossi for undeclared revenues of 112 million euros ($160 million) between 2000 to 2004. The officials said, against the European Taxes Agreements among European countries, Rossi's London residency has enabled him to take advantage of favourable tax conditions, such as only declaring earnings made in Britain and avoiding taxes on his lucrative merchandising and sponsorship contracts, commenting that Rossi had: "residency in London but is not domiciled there." It noted that in 2002, Rossi's Italian tax form declared earnings of 500 euros, while sponsorship contracts were all reported to be made out to foreign companies, but with his affairs controlled mainly from Italy. In February 2008, Rossi announced that he had reached a settlement with the Italian tax authorities: he paid 35 million Euros to close the tax case.

Other hobbies

Rossi tries to keep his personal life out of the public eye as much as possible, though he makes no secret of his fondness for Italian football club Inter Milan. After winning his ninth World title in October 2009, Inter congratulated Rossi on their official website.

Household Pets

Rossi's pet dog was a British bulldog named Guido, which he had from 2000 until 2008. As Rossi travels greatly, Guido lived with Rossi's mother in Tavullia. Guido featured in various pieces of Rossi clothing and merchandise, wearing a prisoner suit during the pre season tests, and when Rossi was lagging 32 points behind in the 2006 championship, Guido was dressed with an Inuit suit. Guido died after the 2008 Australian GP and to pay tribute to him, the new World Champion designed a special sticker made up of Guido sporting a pair of angel wings and floating on celestial clouds. Guido's death garnered so much attention that it was mentioned in Gazzetta dello Sport.

Rossi now has two new dogs (one male and one female), named Cesare and Cecilia. During the Misano GP in 2009, right after Rossi's mistake during Indianapolis, the two dogs were wearing donkey ears on Valentino's helmet.

Career statistics

By season

Record shared with Jorge Lorenzo.
Record shared with Eddie Lawson.
Record shared with Giacomo Agostini.

References

Bibliography

External links

Official website

Yamaha Racing Rider Profile

MotoGP.com Rider Profile

Official Fan Club website

Category:Italian motorcycle racers Category:500cc World Championship riders Category:250cc World Championship riders Category:125cc World Championship riders Category:MotoGP riders Category:Italian rally drivers Category:World Rally Championship drivers Category:Laureus World Sports Awards winners Category:People from Urbino Category:1979 births Category:Living people