No matter what country MotoGP Champion Valentino Rossi makes an appearance in, he draws a huge crowd.
The Number 46 Fiat Yamaha rider made his maiden voyage to India this weekend, making a visit to the 10th Auto Expo in New Delhi. Over 300 Yamaha dealers and members of the press showed to see and interview Rossi.
A true motorcycle lover, the Italian’s thoughts immediately speed towards racing: “I hope that one day we will have the chance to race here …racing in a Grand Prix in India, well I hope to, if there is one in India,” Rossi told Indian media.
The nine-time world champion met with Masao Furusawa, Executive Officer for Engineering Operations at Yamaha Motor Company. Rossi also met with John Abraham, one of the biggest Indian film stars and ambassador for Yamaha India.
“This is my very first visit to India and I am impressed by the beauty of this country, although sadly I did not have much time to visit Delhi,” Rossi told Indian media. “I hope to be able to come back soon and have more time to enjoy this place. Yamaha has been doing great things here and the positive response from the market is the evidence that they have been going in the right direction.
"The new models YZF-R15 and FZ16, which are less-powerful replicas of the R1 and the Fazer, are definitely appropriate for this market and for the characteristics of the traffic here in India. In fact I am amazed at the traffic and the incredible numbers of cars and bikes on the road all the time, by day and night! It was great to see John Abraham, I met him a few years ago when he came to a race so it was nice to see him in his own country, where he is very famous!”
Rossi will return to his hometown of Tavullia Sunday night to relax for two weeks before winter testing begins in Malaysia.
