“He was fantastic, almost perfect; many tried to imitate him, but it was forced, theatrical,” says Casey Stoner, describing Valentino Rossi’s uniqueness.
Valentino Rossi had an impact on MotoGP like few or even none until today, and if in terms of titles his resume puts him with some riders close by (Marc Márquez) and even superior (Giacomo Agostini, Angel Nieto, Mike Hailwood), the truth is that his charismatic and controversial nature also marked his career and made him unique.
Casey Stoner, a two-time world champion, also has this opinion, who said in the Ducati Diaries podcast that he never tried to imitate the Italian, or take on his protagonism: ‘I didn’t follow in Valentino’s footsteps. I didn’t try to take on the role he had. That was him, it was his character. It was fantastic for the sport. It was almost perfect, the way he did everything’.
However, Stoner guarantees, there were those who tried to imitate Rossi’s way of being, but without success, since it was not natural to them, nor a trait of their personality:
– I never tried to be that person. Since my time, I’ve seen a lot of people trying to be this same character, trying to win over Valentino’s fans. But it’s so forced, so theatrical. Even so, they are adored for it.
