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Here Is a Healthy Dose of Valentino Rossi Fanboy Love

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Do you bleed neon yellow? Then we have got the Valentino Rossi video for you. A production by the folks at GoPro (who sponsor Rossi), this 11-minute short film tries to capture Rossi’s tumultuous 2017 season.

It’s not really a documentary though…more like a VR46 love-fest, featuring The Doctor, his ranch, and his hometown. Still, if you are a fan of the nine-time world champion, this video will brighten your day.

If you are a MotoGP fanatic who is equally excited for the 2018 season, which is already off to a good start, this video will hit your joy button.

…But if you are part of the Catalan MotoGP Mafia and wear ants on your helmet…well, you might just want to move along. There’s nothing for you to see here.

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Bikes

Valentino Rossi’s Special Yamaha XJR1300 Flat Tracker

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It is good to be Valentino Rossi. Not only do you have nine world championships to your name, legions of yellow-crazy fans, but you also get pretty nice gifts from your friends.

Take “Mya” for example – a special Yamaha XJR1300 custom flat tracker that the folks at VR|46 built for their fearless leader.

Now, when you think about bikes that should be the basis for a custom project, the Yamaha XJR1300 doesn’t exactly come to mind. It probably doesn’t help that this decades-old model is only Euro3 compliant, and set to sunset at the end of this year.

The XJ1300 certainly doesn’t strike us as the appropriate starting point for a flat track bike either, especially with its 530 lbs weight figure.

That all being said, the VR|46 crew have done a pretty good job of spiffing up the old girl.

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MotoGP

Got an Hour? Watch This Valentino Rossi Movie Series

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Monster Energy’s five-part video series on Valentino Rossi has finally come to its conclusion, and for fans of The Doctor, it is roughly an hour of video that hammers home the continued idolization of the Grand Prix motorcycle racer that many refer to as The G.O.A.T. or Greatest Of All Time.

Episode One gives us the genesis story of Valentino Rossi as a motorcycle racer, and as a popular figure. The episode, along with the series as a whole, relies on Rossi’s inner circle to tell most of the Italian’s story, and the episode sets the stage for things to come.

Mugello is the epicenter of the second episode, as it sets the tone for the motorcycle racing culture in Italy, and the iconic race track has been home to a number of Rossi’s post-race antics and famous one-off helmet designs.

The third episode focuses on The Ranch, Valentino Rossi’s flat track course and training facility in Tavullia, Italy. The dream of any rider, you can tell that Rossi is proud of his creation, and what it affords him to do with honing his tradecraft, as well as hanging out with his friends.

Episode Four basks in the yellow glory that is Valentino Rossi. This episode is the neon wet dream of all hardcore Valentino Rossi fans, as it shows not only Rossi’s impressive racing career, but also sets a narrative for how Valentino has shaped the MotoGP Championship.

The final installment is the moneymaker, with obvious nods and plugs for Valentino Rossi’s various business enterprises, sponsors, and partnerships.

In a less schwarmy way though, the fifth episode also takes a look at the VR46 Academy, which is developing the talent of young Italian racers. This is critical element not only to Valentino Rossi’s legacy, but the continued Italian powerhouse in motorcycle racing.

Love him or hate him, you cannot deny the racing talent and business juggernaut that Valentino Rossi has become. Any true MotoGP racing fan owes it to themselves to spend some time watching these videos, even if they make you curiously thirst for a Monster Energy drink.

We have all five of them waiting for you, after the jump.

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MotoGP

Official: Marquez’s Management Confirms Split with VR46

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As we reported back in January, Marc Marquez has ended his agreement with Valentino Rossi’s VR46 Racing Apparel company to produce and sell merchandising for the Spaniard and his younger brother.

Today, official confirmation came in the form of a press release from his management company, Alzamora Communications. The agreement with VR46 Racing Apparel has been officially terminated.

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MotoGP

Marc Marquez Ends Contract with VR46 Racing Apparel

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The feud between Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez shows no signs of abating. As, it emerged today that Marquez has severed a number of links which tied him to the Italian,

This includes ending prematurely a contract for merchandise with Rossi’s VR46 Racing Apparel company, and ending his lease of accommodation in the GP Rooms portable hotel run by the Nieto family.

The news, broken by Speedweek and confirmed to us by sources with knowledge of the situation, is a reversal of reports from Valencia last year. Then, Spanish websites were reporting that Valentino Rossi had decided to terminate the contract, at the end of the second year of its three year term.

Those reports were denied, but now it appears that it is Marquez who has decided he does not want Rossi’s VR46 business selling his merchandise.

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MotoGP

News Tidbits from MotoGP: Brno vs. Indy, Stoner at Ducati, Valencia Fallout, & Some Holiday Entertainment

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With Christmas nearly upon us, and very little happening in the world of motorcycle racing, time for a round up of recent news. Here’s what’s been going on in recent weeks, as well as some recommended reading and listening for over the holiday period.

Brno vs Indy – On or Off?

The news that the Indianapolis round of MotoGP had been dropped came as a huge disappointment to a lot of US fans.

Though few people were fans of the track layout – despite recent improvements which took the worst edges off the layout – the event as a whole was well liked, and, for a US MotoGP round, fairly well attended.

In recent weeks, rumors have been circulating that the event could make a return. Though just speculation at the moment, Indianapolis could be being groomed as a possible replacement for the Czech round of MotoGP at Brno.

Given the troubled recent history of the Brno round, and the excellent organization behind the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, there is a chance that behind the smoke, there is a fire powering the rumors.

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MotoGP

Valentino Rossi’s 2015 Misano AGV Helmet

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It’s another home round for The Doctor, so that of course means another special helmet design. For this year’s San Marino GP, Valentino Rossi’s AGV Pista helmet plays to the theme of the coastal race track, with an underwater theme.

Very obviously, Rossi is pictured as a yellow fish that is being chased by a shark (we’ll let you decipher the symbolism there). The words “Via Via Via!” in Italian are on either side of the helmet, translating to “Get Away Get Away Get Away!” in English.

Not one to leave his pets out of the design, on the back of the helmet are Valentino’s dogs Cecilia and Cesare, as well as his cat Rossano, who are sporting some snorkels for their underwater excursion.

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MotoGP

Valentino Rossi’s 2015 Mugello AGV Helmet

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It’s the Italian GP…at Mugello, which means two things: 1) hundreds of thousands of rabid Italian motorcycle fans, and 2) another special AGV helmet from The Doctor.

Of course, riders wear special helmets all the time — there’s probably a one-off design at every race — but for some reason Valentino Rossi’s lids, at his home grand prix, are always a special occasion for GP fans.

For the 2015 Italian GP, Valentino Rossi is wearing the very attractive “Yellow Energy” helmet, penned of course by Aldo Drudi. For the VR46 fans in the crowd, we have a smattering of high-resolution photos of the custom AGV Pista GP helmet. Enjoy!

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Banter

Video: What It’s Like to Hang Out with Valentino Rossi

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Hanging out with Valentino Rossi has its perks. The nine-time world champion has all the cool two-wheeled toys a guy could want. He has an epic flat track course in the backyard of his house in Tavullia called MotoRanch. When his buddies come over to hang out, it’s people like Marc Marquez, Loris Capirossi, Bradley Smith, and a bevy of other professional motorcycle racers who show up.

Playing host to such a party after the San Marino GP, which takes place only a few miles away at Misano, Rossi & Co. seemed to be having an epic get-together. Thankfully, someone in Rossi’s entourage had the idea to film the 20-something riders who showed up all day to fraternize and ride.

Amongst those in attendance were Leon Camier, Loris Capirossi, Federico Fuligni, Luca Marini, Mattia Pasini, Marc Marquez, Franco Morbidelli, Chad Reed, Niccoló Bulega, Tito Rabat, Mauro Sanchini, Pecco Bagnaia, Bradley Smith, Andrea Migno, Lorenzo Baldassari, and Miguel Oliveira, though we think you’ll spot a few others in the video. Enjoy it after the jump.

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Bikes

Ducati VR|46 Concept by Steven Galpin

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One of the more compelling designs we have seen grace our pixels lately, today’s concept sketch is by young automotive designer Steven Galpin, and harkens back to when MotoGP racer Valentino Rossi was still a part of Ducati Corse’s GP program.

Imagining a special edition version of the Ducati 1199 Panigale, a bike whose “frameless” monocoque chassis is based off the Ducati Desmosedici race bike, Galpin has smoothed out the lines of the Italian superbike, creating something entirely different, though clearly related to the Panigale.

A quick glance at Galpin’s drawings, and you may be wondering where the Ducati’s underslung exhaust has gone (it’s a noticeable hole on the bike’s clean lines). We suggest you train your eye onto the concept’s swingarm, as an integrated exhaust has been added to the single-sided swingarm.

Galpin’s work is intriguing, and should satiate some of the issues that people have had with the Panigale’s busy bodywork; however, the Ducati VR|46 brings its own criticisms as well (we’re not so sure about its 2018 delivery date either). Overall though, we like what Galpin has done here — sometimes less is more. Thanks for the tip Nik!

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