Hamilton and Rossi swap rides

They had raised the idea of ​​a machine swap last March during the Grand Prix MotoGP of Qatar, and it is finally on December 9 that Lewis Hamilton et Valentino Rossi will meet at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia, Spain. Today, the six-time world champion F1 will ride the Italian's Yamaha M1, when the nine-time motorcycle world champion slips into the passenger compartment of the Mercedes W10 from the British.

“I'm super excited, explained Lewis in Sao Paulo. I've been riding motorcycles for several years, but I've only done three days on the track. They had been incredible. I don't miss any MotoGP events. There is a small group of enthusiasts within the team. Testing a Grand Prix motorcycle is something I have always wanted to do since I was young. And being on the same track as Valentino is going to be surreal! For me, it is in any case a great honor. He’s such an icon in his sport, he’s done so much for it… It’s going to be great to see him in my car! ".

Lewis Hamilton has never tested a MotoGP but has already ridden an R1 Superbike in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, at the end of 2018. That day, he was around 7 seconds off the record, a good time for a beginner.

For Valentino Rossi, this will be the fourth time he has driven an F1 car. The Italian has already driven the Ferraris of Michael Schumacher in 2004 and 2006, and that of Fernando Alonso in 2010. At that time, rumors had also spread about his reconversion within the Team.

For the record, the last motorcycle drivers to have tested an F1 were Jorge Lorenzo (then Yamaha driver), invited by Mercedes in 2014 and Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda Team) who had the opportunity to test a Toro Rosso in 2018 on the route of the Red Bull Ring in Austria.