Photo: Javier Jiménez/DPPI

Valentino Rossi believes the BMW M Hybrid V8 LMDh car fits his driving style more naturally, after first testing the car during the FIA ​​World Endurance Championship rookie test in Bahrain.

The nine-time world motorcycle champion made his long-awaited first test ride on Sunday aboard the prototype driven by Dallara at the Bahrain International Circuit.

Rossi completed 69 laps in the No. 20 car, posting a time of 1:50.577 at the end of the second and final session to finish the day as the second-fastest rookie behind Ferrari driver Arthur Leclerc.

The Italian spoke of a “good feeling with the car” after the test, describing the M Hybrid V8 as a “real racing car”.

“I feel good because the car has a lot of power, but you have good feedback when you drive,” Rossi said.

“You can understand the car. It’s very sensitive. And also the braking without ABS, I really like it. It’s much better.

“Of course you made mistakes sometimes, but that’s something you can adapt more to your style. Because when you have ABS, you arrive at one point and then it’s ABS.

“So it’s better and it’s also a real racing car. It’s more precise, it’s stiffer and you have a lot of aero, so also in fast corners and in braking zones it’s impressive.

Rossi, who drove a Team WRT Oreca 07 Gibson during last year’s rookie test, said the Hypercar fits his driving style more naturally than the GT3 machine he has raced since moving full-time to sports car races in 2022. .

“First of all, the line with the Hypercar is more similar to the motorcycle line because you usually stay on the track,” he explained.

“Because with the GT, for me, at the beginning, it was very difficult, you have to cut everything. Cut on the outside, cut especially on the inside (the edges). So it’s a different way of driving.

“This one looks more like a bicycle. The speed is also higher, but at the same time you also have more grip.

“So it’s very good and it’s also a real testing day. I was alone in the car, I had all the guys with me, I had René Rast who gave me a lot of advice so I could progress during the day like that. It was good. I appreciated it.

Rossi’s time of 1:50.577 put him ahead of fellow BMW rookies Max Hesse and Dan Harper in the second session, which he revealed was partly due to the availability of two sets of new medium tires at the end of the test.

“I was a bit unlucky because I had two sets and I think with the second set we can improve,” he said.

“But in the first set I had a red flag and after the second set, when I attacked, I had GT3 traffic so I tried to overtake but I spun tail.

“And they say it’s over because you know you usually destroy the tire, you puncture it, you damage it. But luckily it was good, so I restarted and (did) another lap and set a 50.5.

Rossi leaning towards WEC over Fanatec GT Europe for third season with BMW

Rossi said he had not yet made a final decision regarding his racing plans for next year, noting that he would likely not combine the WEC with the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS for a second year consecutive.

Instead, he indicated it was likely he would remain in the world championship next year, citing BMW’s preference as the reason.

“For them, it’s more important,” he said. “I don’t decide yet because some things are better here, some things are better there. Now it’s not the WEC anymore.

“Anyway, in two or three weeks I will take part in the GT World Challenge for the last race in Jeddah and we will decide right after and let you know. Either way, I’ll do one or the other (not both).

Jamie Klein contributed to this report

Davey Euwema is the European publisher of Sportscar365. Based in the Netherlands, Euwema covers, among other series, the FIA ​​World Endurance Championship, the European Le Mans Series and the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS.