the challenge continues at Yas Marina

Valentino Rossi will participate in the 12 Hours of the Gulf on the Abu Dhabi circuit in mid-December. Among the opponents also the former rival Loris Capirossi.

Valentino Rossi and Loris Capirossi, the challenge began back in 1998 in the 250 class riding the Aprilia. The first round goes to the Bolognese driver who wins the third world title after the two in the 125 class in 1990-1991. But for the Doctor the moment of revenge arrives immediately. In 1999, promoted to the sole pilot of the official Aprilia team, he graduated world champion, while Loris closed third. The challenge of Assen is famous, with the last five laps remaining in the history of the World Championship and victory for the Emilian. "It took me two years to forget," the Tavullia pilot admitted.

In 2000 they both find themselves in the premier class and Valentino Rossi immediately shows he has a long and glorious career ahead of him. It takes flight, becomes a legend, reaches nine world titles. Capirossi ends his racing career at Valencia 2011, at the end of a championship marred by the death of Marco Simoncelli. Today the Pesaro continues to run and excite in MotoGP, while his friend and former rival is part of the Race Direction for Dorna. But in life there is always space for the "historical recycles" of Vichiana memory. In fact, December 14, in Abu Dhabi, Valentino Rossi and Loris Capirossi will return to face each other, but at the wheel of a Ferrari GT3. The former will team up with his brother Luca Marini and his inseparable friend Alessio Salucci. The second, instead, will run alongside Niki Cadei and Alexis De Bernardi.

The program of the 12 Hours of the Gulf (race won by Jorge Lorenzo in 2014) provides for the first free practice session on Thursday 12 December, preceded by a briefing at 15:00. Friday 13 December free practice and qualifying, starting at 09:00 am. Sunday 14 the two 6-hour races each. Both Italian champions will line up at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi with a Ferrari 488 GT3 from the Kessel team.