Storm worry for Valentino Rossi

MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi has expressed concern that heavy storms might seriously disrupt this weekend’s Malaysian clash at the Sepang circuit.

Rossi was speaking after a typical torrential rainstorm battered the Sepang circuit earlier this afternoon, with more tropical downpours predicted throughout the penultimate weekend of the campaign.

The circuit was engulfed in layers of black cloud earlier on this afternoon before monsoon conditions hit the track for nearly 45 minutes.

And Italian Rossi said a repeat of today’s conditions would make it hard to ride in over the weekend.

The Fiat Yamaha rider, who has already wrapped up an eight world title, said: “The bigger issue is the weather, it looks like it is going to start to rain always around 2pm and that is the race time. We have to wait and see the conditions.”

Heavy rainstorms often batter the Sepang circuit, and in 2006 qualifying was abandoned with parts of the track waterlogged.

The 29-year-old added: “If it rained like earlier it is very difficult to race with a lot of water on the track, but maybe we have sun.”