The clear headliner from today’s FIA WEC Rookie Test in Bahrain was MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi, who made his first Hypercar test with BMW Team WRT. The Italian completed 69 tours of the Sakhir circuit over the two sessions in the No. 20 M Hybrid V8, setting a best time of 1m50.557s to go seventh in the combined rankings.
Speaking with reporters at the end of the day, the 45-year-old Italian made clear he really enjoyed the experience behind the wheel.
“I am really happy about today,” he said. “From my first moment, I had a good feeling with the car and tires. I expected to suffer a bit more in warming up the tires. But here with the 50 degrees I didn’t have that problem.
“I tried both tire options, set my quickest on the mediums but felt good with the hard. This car has a lot of horsepower, but you have a good feeling and I like the braking without ABS. Sometimes you make mistakes but you can adapt it more to your style. It’s a proper race car, more stiff and precise, and you have a lot of aero so it’s impressive.
“The line with the Hypercar is also similar to the motorcycle line because you stay on the track and in a GT you cut everything. So this car is more similar to a bike.
“As for my time, I was a bit unlucky because I had two sets and with the second you can improve. With the first, I had a red flag, with the second I spun in traffic. Luckily I managed another lap and set the 50.5 but there’s more potential there.”
One of the biggest LMGT3 questions heading into the off-season is whether or not Rossi will return to WRT in 2025. When asked about his plans for next season, he said he hasn’t yet made a final call and is still deciding between a GT3 campaign in FIA WEC or GT World Challenge.
“I haven’t made my mind up, but I have quite a lot of pressure from BMW to remain in the WEC because it’s more important for them. But I haven’t decided — some things are better here, some better there. Now it’s more WEC,” he said.
“Anyway, I will race in the GT World Challenge finale in Jeddah, and then I will decide what I am going to do. It will be one or the other.”
Rossi’s experience today appears to have been an eye-opener. But will it lead to further outings in a prototype?
“I have to say after today coming back to GTs will be a little more difficult,” he said. “Next year, no. If I had the chance in the future, why not? The first test was very good.”