Valentino Rossi's long-time engineer Jeremy Burgess has hinted that the MotoGP legend is past his prime in a television interview on Ten before the season-opener in Qatar.
Burgess is one of MotoGP's most respected engineers and assisted former champions Wayne Gardner and Mick Doohan during their stellar careers. Since then he's been embedded firmly in Rossi's camp, following the Italian from Honda to Yamaha, and most recently to Ducati. The 59-year-old Aussie says Rossi is no longer the best rider in MotoGP.
"He's a realist, he knows he's perhaps not at the level of Casey (Stoner) and Lorenzo but he certainly believes he can race with the rest of them," Burgess said. "At some point in your life you're not as good as you once were.
"I'm not saying he's not, but at some point we've got to give him a bike to let him show that he can get back up there."
Considered by many to be the greatest of all time, Rossi holds an unparalleled record in modern motorcycle racing with nine grand prix world championships, seven of which came in the top-tier MotoGP class.
source: foxsport.com.au
