It’s been six years since Jorge Lorenzo last lined up on a MotoGP grid, calling time on his career at the close of the 2019 season.
The three-time champion was never short of rivals, but few stood out quite like Valentino Rossi. While several riders managed to get the better of Rossi in the same team, none did it with Lorenzo’s style.
Lorenzo didn’t shy away from sharing a garage with Rossi again when he returned in 2013 and even added another championship to his tally in 2015.
Lorenzo also noticed something about Rossi that often goes unmentioned, especially regarding his rivalry with Marc Marquez in 2015. It’s a small detail, but one that adds an extra layer to their story.
Jorge Lorenzo says Valentino Rossi should have lost his licence in 2015
Lorenzo believes Marquez can be beaten, and he knows that it’s possible given how he managed to do so in 2015. It was the only time in his career that he would manage to, before he bounced back and won the following four championships in a row.
One of the biggest moments that season came at the Malaysian Grand Prix, where Rossi’s leg kick on Marquez led to a penalty that forced him to start from the back of the grid for the final race. But Lorenzo has always maintained that punishment wasn’t enough, claiming more should have been done at the time.
Lorenzo ended up winning by just five points over Rossi. Speaking about it years later on DAZN’s Decoded documentary, he said: “Seeing the two of them six meters off the racing line and Valentino looking at him, moving his leg. I couldn’t believe it.
“It was an intentional, completely unsportsmanlike action. If a Moto3 rider did that, at least they’d have their licence revoked.”
Lorenzo claims Rossi should have been banned for the rest of the season
Rossi was found to be at fault after a post-race review and was handed a penalty. The punishment handed out was three points on his license, along with a back-of-the-grid start for the final race in Valencia.
That decision ended up playing a major role in costing him another championship. He finished fourth in that race despite having enough pace to win, and even second place would have been enough to secure the title.
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In effect, it cost him a championship, which many would see as a significant consequence. But Lorenzo has argued that even this wasn’t harsh enough.
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