THE Petronas SRT MotoGP team has officially unveiled its colour scheme for the 2021 MotoGP season, as Valentino Rossi and Franco Morbidelli lead the charge.
Valentino Rossi New Era at Petronas for MotoGP 2021
The online launch was not just the first time we’ve been able to see the Petronas bike in its 2021 colours, it also marks the first time we’ve seen Rossi in a satellite squad since 2001 when he raced for the Nastro Azzurro Honda team.
Satellite team it may be, but Rossi has been promised a full-factory bike and engineering support direct from Yamaha for what will be his 22nd premier-class season. Morbidelli on the other hand will be riding a slightly older ‘A-spec’ machine.
Rossi was nerfed to the Petronas squad after French sensation Fabio Quartararo was named as the teammate to Maverick Vinales for 2021, leaving Rossi with a question mark hanging over his career. He did though opt for another season in the sport, with the move away from the factory Yamaha squad being seen by many as a swansong season for the veteran Italian.
Rossi won’t have it easy in the Petronas team though, with Franco Morbidelli shining in 2021 as he battled for the title against the eventual victor Joan Mir. Morbidelli was firmly the most successful Yamaha-mounted rider of the year, amassing three race wins and finished second to Mir in the standings. Morbidelli took the championship fight right down to the wire, proving that the Italian is more than a match for the best in the world.
