Bike star Rossi eyes four-wheel switch

Speaking to Motor Cycle News, Rossi indicated that he would be ready to make full-time switch to cars in the next few years. He is currently the subject of intense speculation about his bike racing future, and whether he will stay with Honda or move to Yamaha.

"I want to stay another two or three years in MotoGP but beyond that I'm not sure what I want to do," he said. "I love to drive cars. I started my career in karts and the only reason I changed was because that was too expensive. But it has never left my mind to one day think about racing in cars."

Rossi contested last year's Rally GB in a semi-works Peugeot 206, but crashed out on the opening day.

"When I did the RAC I was very unlucky," he said. "That was just for fun, but maybe one day I'll be doing it properly. If I was doing it regularly, then who knows what it might lead to?"

Ferrari chief Luca di Montezemolo has also suggested that he might give Rossi a run in one of his Formula 1 cars in the near future.

"If the conditions were right I think it would be worth it - a serious test without commitment from either party," he said. "It's always been difficult to go from two wheels to four, and these days it is even harder. But Valentino is a great champion and a symbol of motorsports."