Marco Bezzecchi
Kevin Schwantz told the story of seeing a young Valentino Rossi and how he was left wowed by his talent.
Rossi made his premier class debut in 2000, after finding championship success with Aprilia in the 125cc and 250cc classes.
After making the jump to the 500cc class, Valentino Rossi managed to become the most dominant rider of his generation as the MotoGP era began.
Give us your MotoGP Mount Rushmore
Rossi set the standard for future MotoGP riders with his dominance and his ability to grow the sport to unprecedented heights.
While there may have been some who didn’t think Valentino Rossi would become such a defining figure for motorcycle racing, Kevin Schwantz saw this potential many years before he made his debut.
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Kevin Schwantz shares his first impression of Valentino Rossi
Speaking on the Gas It Out podcast, Kevin Schwantz spoke about seeing Valentino Rossi ride pocket bikes in 1989, very early in his motorsport journey.
Schwantz noted that Rossi was outperforming everyone on the track, including his teammate, who was already far ahead of every other rider on the track.
“I went and watched him [Rossi] in ’89, and watched him race in pocket bikes. And for me, it’s difficult to watch a race and see how fast somebody is. It’s not something I can visually pick up.
“But Rossi’s teammate was faster than everybody on the track, visibly. And when Rossi got on the bike, he was even that much faster that you could see it again. Wow, what a difference…”
Schwantz saw something in Rossi very early on. And after he entered the premier class, he delivered on the potential he displayed years ago.
What is your favourite bike from Valentino Rossi’s MotoGP career?
Kevin Schwantz praises Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez for being able to ‘ride anything’
Speaking further in the podcast, Schwantz noted that both Rossi and Marc Marquez are two of the greatest riders because of their ability to win with any bike.
“I think we know Rossi can ride anything. He rode 500, rode a 125 for a season, then won a championship. Rode a 250 for a season, won a championship.
“Rode 500 for a season, won a championship. Marquez also seems to be able to ride anything. The Honda that nobody could do anything on, and he was winning races and championships on it. You can’t take anything away from the guy.”
Both Rossi and Marquez have won nine world championships each, all across different classes and with different teams in MotoGP.
There’s no denying that both riders are in the conversation for the greatest of all time, and their versatility is a huge reason for it.
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