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Yamaha team principal Massimo Meregalli says he does not believe Valentino Rossi will be replaced for next weekend’s MotoGP Grand Prix of Teruel after testing positive for COVID-19 on Thursday.
Rossi posted a positive result after feeling unwell on Thursday morning.
He will not race in the Aragon GP this weekend, while his participation in the second Aragon event next week is highly unlikely.
Yamaha does not plan to present a replacement this weekend, but the possibility has arisen to put test rider Jorge Lorenzo on the bike for the Teruel GP.
The three-time MotoGP champion has only had four days of testing since February, the most recent of which was familiarization with the two-day track in the Algarve last week, although he has yet to ride the 2020 M1.
Meregalli says Lorenzo may be an option in case Rossi is forced to miss the Valencia double next month, but admitted that his performance in Portugal, where he was four seconds behind Aleix Espargaró’s Aprilia, set the pace. , showed you need more time on the bike first.
“Yesterday we received a bad surprise, which we did not expect,” Meregalli said when asked about Rossi’s diagnosis in the MotoGP world feed.
“He tried to be safe, but unfortunately he got caught.
“Now we just want him to come back as soon as possible. He’s feeling some of the symptoms.
“We sure hope that he will be back in Valencia, we don’t think he will return for Aragon 2.
“At this point, we have yet to speak to replace him here, but honestly speaking, I don’t think we will.”
Speaking to Sky Sports Italia about Lorenzo, Meregalli added: “We now have 10 days to evaluate a replacement for Aragon 2, but at the moment we have not spoken to anyone.
“I’m not ruling out Lorenzo, but I think that after the tests he did in Portimao it is clear that he needs to run a little more.
“If Valentino couldn’t go back to Valencia, [Lorenzo] no doubt more will be taken into account.
“Lorenzo traveled with us for a day and a half in Sepang in February, after which he never rode a bike. [until last week].
“We also talked about it with our drivers, even though they are competing in the championship, during breaks they always need to race.
“Surely Jorge has lost the habit of braking, accelerating, accelerating, so he definitely needs to turn a little more on the bike.”
