Valentino Rossi swears on his daughters over Marc Marquez kick accusation
The clash still defines the sport today (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
Connor Andrews is Formula 1 and MotoGP writer for GPblog and various outlets. Having worked in motorsport for 15 years for leading companies, he has interviewed the sports biggest names and attended multiple Grands Prix.
Valentino Rossi’s latest autobiography has now been released, and he finally addresses one of the biggest questions of his career: Was it a kick on Marc Marquez?
The pair experienced MotoGP’s most controversial crash in 2015 at the Malaysian Grand Prix when Marquez hit the deck after their bikes came together.
Marquez was out of the title battle at the time, and Rossi claimed before and after the event that the Spaniard was interfering with his competition with Jorge Lorenzo.
The Honda and Yamaha riders then traded leathers throughout the race in Sepang, with Rossi making gestures telling Marquez to stop.
Then, at Turn 14, Marquez tried to go around the outside of the Italian, and they touched again, with Marquez falling to the ground.
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Rossi’s left leg came off his bike during the incident, which many described as a kick, and the outcome was a back-of-the-grid start at the Valencia season finale, effectively ending his title chances.
Rossi has been speaking about his Marquez rivalry in the media while promoting his book, and now that it’s out, he goes into detail about that infamous moment in 2015.
Rossi and Marquez never made up on or off track (Credit: Red Bull Content Pool)
Rossi explains why infamous Marquez collision looked like a kick
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He writes: "I approached him, looked at him, and said, 'What the hell are you doing? Enough already, stop it.'
“Marquez accelerated to try and overtake me; his brake lever caught my leg under my leathers at knee height.
"At that moment, my left leg slid down. It looks like a kick. It really looks like a kick caused the crash. I think so too, seeing the footage."
Rossi then went on to deny the accusations in very bold fashion.
He added: "There was never a kick. I can swear on anything. Even on my daughters' heads."
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Rossi goes on to claim that MotoGP CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta supported his claim about the incident that still dominates the sport.
Rossi’s autobiography comes at a curious time, with Marquez on the brink of surpassing his championship total.
The pair currently have an identical record, with nine world titles overall, and seven in MotoGP.
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Marquez will almost certainly claim his 10th next time out in Portugal, with Aprilia duo Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi needing a series of miracles to stay in the fight.
Nevertheless, the Ducati star will likely again be asked about Rossi.
Marquez previously discussed reading Rossi's autobiography
Earlier this season, when his former rival announced the release of the autobiography, Marquez responded to a question by saying: “I don’t know if he will speak about it [our rivalry] or not.
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“Why not [read it]? Maybe when I retire, I will read it to try to learn new things because in the end it’s good to learn from all the legends of every sport.
“I read some books, some biographies and why not? You always learn from the top legends and sportsmen.”
If and when Marquez wins his eighth premier-class title, he will draw level in that category with record holder Giacomo Agostini.
During the Qatar Grand Prix where Marquez put himself on the brink of the title, former rival Jorge Lorenzo spoke about his legacy compared to Rossi and Agostini.
He overlooked Rossi in his comments, but has clarified that he didn’t directly dismiss him, as some outlets claimed.
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Lorenzo clarifies controversial Rossi and Marquez GOAT comments
"No, I didn't say that. I didn't even mention Valentino Rossi,” he said on Cadena SER.
"It's unacceptable that they're playing with your reputation to generate more likes and clicks.
"This statement might cause me to have a bad relationship with Valentino again, and that's not something I want, over something I didn't say. I have immense respect and admiration for Valentino.”
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Lorenzo then went on to clarify what he was trying to put across.
He explained: "In terms of media presence, he [Rossi] is and surely will be the best in history, in terms of charisma, perhaps in terms of intelligence on the bike and composure in close quarters.
"For me, Marquez is technically better; if we're talking about technique, Marquez is the [Lionel] Messi of motorcycles."
Asked for his definitive ranking, Lorenzo said: "For me, Marquez is technically the best in history.”
He then put Rossi second ahead of Agostini, explaining: “I think Agostini in our sport would be like the Pelé of motorcycling.
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“We didn't experience that era as much, and there was a lot of mechanical inequality.”
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