Valentino Rossi will have another test outing in a Ferrari Formula 1 car later this month.
The MotoGP superstar tested for the Maranello squad on several occasions in 2005 and 2006, when he contemplated a switch from two wheels to four, but decided against it and has since insisted that any dalliances with F1 are just for fun.
Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali said Rossi would be given another F1 run on 20-21 January at Barcelona, albeit in a two-year-old F2008 owing to testing restrictions.
Rossi drove the same car in November 2008 as a reward for winning the MotoGP title, and added a seventh top-level motorcycling crown in ‘09.
“Chairman Montezemolo had promised it to him after he won the world championship again,” explained Domenicali.
“Valentino will drive in Barcelona on 20 and 21 January behind the wheel of an F2008.
“After that we’ll concentrate on our respective goals: MotoGP for Vale and Formula 1 for Ferrari.”
Domenicali even suggested that it wasn’t too late for Rossi, 31, to take up F1 in the future in the event that the rules permit teams to field three cars.
“Never say never,” he said.
“There has been a lot of discussion about a third car and this could be an interesting improvement for the whole world of Formula 1, even more so if Rossi had the possibility to race in our sport as a result.
“This is true not only for Ferrari, but also for the other teams: When we’re talking about a third car we don’t necessarily mean that it has to be three cars in our team, but we might also give our single-seater to be run by a small team.”
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