Rossi Scored 3rd Place in GT Class at Vallelunga

Valentino Rossi finished a successful weekend at Vallelunga with Ferrari, as the 9-time MotoGP champion clinched a great 3rd place in the GT class of the Vallelunga Six Hours on Sunday. The Italian rider was even in pole position for a runner-up spot in his class on Sunday and only mechanical problems prevented him from coming second at the chequered flag.

As reported by us late last week, Rossi accepted Ferrari's offer to drive a 430 GT3-spec Ferrari for Kessel Racing, while joined by best friend Alessio Salucci and FIA GT driver Andrea Ceccato. While securing 3rd place at the finish line, the trio managed to come 11th in the overall classification.

The mechanical problems encountered by his Ferrari 430 GT3-class forced Rossi & Co to make some necessary but unscheduled pit stops in the second part of the 6-hour race. However, the Italian was seen as a good competitor by the other opponents, including overall winners Thomas Biagi, Edoardo Piscopo and Filippo Francioni (LMP2-spec Lola-Judd).

Having his ego strengthened after his successful outing in the Vallelunga endurance race, Rossi will now head to the Autodromo Nationale di Monza for his attempt to clinch a 3rd win in the Monza Rally Show, later this week. He will again undergo some tough competition from another legendary endurance racing driver Rinaldo Capello, who previously won 4 editions of the aforementioned event.

In addition, Rossi is scheduled to return to a Formula One cockpit after more than a year in January, when he has been granted a private testing session with Ferrari. We're yet to find out the venue where the testing will take place or the car to be test-driven by the Italian ace.