Why Yamaha is about to risk losing Valentino Rossi

Yamaha’s decision to swap Valentino Rossi for Fabio Quartararo and the imminent agreement between VR46 and Ducati could mean that the Japanese factory finally end up losing the most popular ambassador the sport has ever seen.

The entire MotoGP community, from the organisers to the teams, are waiting to see what the consequences will be when modern motorcycling’s most iconic figure finally retires. Clearly, that includes Yamaha.

Ever since he returned ‘home’ after two disastrous seasons with Ducati in 2013, Rossi monopolised the Iwata factory’s communications and marketing strategy. Having ‘The Doctor’ on the books has always been far too big a deal not to showcase as much as possible, and his jokingly self-appointed title was even made official in 2005 when the University of Urbino recognised his contribution to public relations.

Rossi’s media impact remains far superior than that of any of his rivals. Never is it more evident than amongst the fans at circuits around the world, where his trademark yellow is woven through the grandstands, whilst other indicators show his popularity to dwarf that of other riders. The simplest one is his Instagram profile, which has 10.4 million followers – almost double that of Marc Marquez (5.5 million), who is second on the list. In addition, more than 5.5 million people follow the Italian on Twitter, compared to 2.5 million for the Spaniard.

Aside from his value on social media channels, Rossi's mark on two-wheeled sport is and always will be indelible. It is Rossi, in the main part, who has been responsible for the globalisation of a sport that until his emergence was never anything more than niche.

Fans of Valentino Rossi, Yamaha Factory Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

As you would expect, the series promoter Dorna is anxious to see what the reaction will when the sport loses what has been its biggest star for more than two decades. At Yamaha, meanwhile, there is a mixture of resignation and frustration at the possible loss of Rossi as a brand ambassador, a situation that seemed impossible only a couple of months ago. To work out where the Iwata factory might have got their strategy wrong, it is necessary to analyse recent movements in the market, both in terms of the riders and factories, with a view to 2020 and 2021.

PLUS: The signs that point to Rossi's MotoGP retirement

First of all, the seven-time MotoGP world champion was not happy with the way his replacement in the factory team by Quartararo was handled. As far as Autosport has been able to understand it, the way the Yamaha fleet for 2021 was put into place went as follows.

For somebody like Rossi, who is so used to being the master of his own destiny, to be suddenly held at the will of Yamaha without any wriggle room didn’t exactly sit well

‘El Diablo’ agreed to move from the Petronas-backed satellite team to the Monster-sponsored factory team before the end of 2019, in a switch that eventually took place this year. A few days after that, Maverick Vinales, who used a tempting offer that he had on the table from Ducati as leverage, secured the second factory M1, negotiating directly with factory headquarters in Japan and sealing an extension that takes him to the end of 2022. Those two moves left Rossi with nowhere to go but the Sepang Racing Team (SRT), even though his deal for 2021 would link him directly to Yamaha and guarantee the best available material.

For somebody like Rossi, who is so used to being the master of his own destiny, to be suddenly held at the will of Yamaha without any wriggle room didn’t exactly sit well.

Despite the discomfort, a close relationship between the VR46 franchise and Yamaha, who supply the bikes to Rossi’s academy, propped up a relationship between factory and rider that expires at the end of this season and looks unlikely to be extended.

Valentino Rossi, Petronas Yamaha SRT, Luca Marini, Esponsorama Racing

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

An announcement is expected in the next few hours that will see VR46 take the step into MotoGP with Ducati next season. The deal is expected to run for three years (2022-2024), with a 2022 model Desmosedici for Luca Marini and a 2021 version for Marco Bezzecchi. As well as that, Ducati are also keen to wrap up an agreement that also covers the needs of the academy – although only for sports bikes such as the Panigale, given that Ducati don’t currently make off-road bikes. Either way, this new coalition could easily leave Yamaha on the sidelines and - even more importantly - free Rossi from any obligations to Yamaha regarding his image.

Once the commercial implications of the movements that were already underway sunk in, a couple of months ago Yamaha tried to hit reverse with regard to contract renewal conversations with SRT. Not just that, but they also tried to seduce VR46 with a discounted offer for their satellite bikes. Rossi, however, turned them down and lined up Ducati instead.

“They are not too comfortable at Yamaha and that’s understandable,” an insider to the conversations told Autosport. “On one hand they are almost certainly about to lose Valentino as an ambassador, whilst they also haven’t managed to reach a deal with VR46 to supply the bikes to the academy and the whole negotiation process has not gone down well with Petronas.”

SRT reportedly feels used by Yamaha, but after the umpteenth unsuccessful approach to Suzuki to put two more bikes on the grid, the team bosses believe that the M1 is the option that gives them the most stability and best chance of results. This agreement will also be announced this week.

The resentment, in any case, is apparent and more than justified, especially when we take into consideration two irrefutable facts. Firstly, Yamaha are currently leading the world championship with Quartararo - a rider who was originally an audacious punt from SRT and Petronas in 2019. If that wasn’t enough, the Malaysian outfit was forced to find a space for Rossi, despite publicly admitting that the Italian veteran’s profile did not fit with the philosophy of their project. Having already swallowed all of that, to now find out that their supplier wants to take their bikes away and offer them more cheaply elsewhere is an insult that any team would find hard to take.

Valentino Rossi, Petronas Yamaha SRT

Photo by: MotoGP