MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi test drove a Peugeot 206 on Thursday ahead of his debut in next month's Rally of Britain.
The Italian will drive in the final round of the World Rally Championship in Britain, which starts on November 14. The 23-year-old Rossi tested the Michelin-backed 206WRC he will drive in the Cardiff-based event for the first time on the gravel roads of the Italian Riveria around Imperia along with co-driver Carlo Cassina.
"It's a fantastic opportunity for me to be able to drive in a World Rally Championship round because rallying is my second passion after motorbikes," said Rossi. "The kilometres I have been able to do today have allowed me to familiarise myself with my car and above all accustom myself to listening to the pace notes read out by my co-driver Carlo. "I felt very comfortable with the car and felt the same sensations as I do in MotoGP concerning cornering lines and engine power. "On the other hand the braking distances are very different."
Rossi, who has dominated the 2002 MotoGP season on board his Honda, will have a two-day test in the Welsh forests at the start of November prior to the event. He said that winning was out the question on his debut, adding that reaching the finish after three gruelling days would his target.
"I won't be driving 100 percent on the first day of Rally GB," he said. "My objective? I have got about as much chance of winning the rally outright as I have of winning the soccer World Cup! "There will be at least 15 drivers ahead of me fighting for that. I just really want to go all the way to the finish."
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Bron: www.rally-action.com)