The number 46 has not only marked the history of motorcycling, it is also recognized and admired in many other sports, starting with Formula 1. Two of the new drivers arriving there in 2019 do not hide being influenced by the Doctor.
We can no longer count the number of young Moto3, Moto2 and even MotoGP riders who have grown up watching the exploits of Valentino Rossi on the track and who often place it at the top of their list of references. Marc Márquez, Johann Zarco, Francesco Bagnaia and so many others have never hidden their great admiration for him and being impressed to ride alongside him, even though he started in the World Cup when they were children or even barely born. !
But motorcycle drivers are not the only ones to have grown up watching Rossi on television, and new drivers arriving in Formula 1, born in the late 1990s, have great admiration for the Doctor. This is the case of two young drivers who will begin their very first season in F1 next year: the Thai Alex Albon, born in 1996, and the British Lando Norris, born in 1999.
When choosing their racing number, both decided to do so by paying homage to Valentino Rossi. Alex Albon, first of all, often wore the number 46 during kart races and even sported replica helmets on the track. However, if this number is free in F1, he preferred not to risk the comparison and choose 23, half of 46. He declared with a laugh: “I've always been a Rossi fan but since I can't replace him, I thought I could be half of him”
For its part, Lando Norris made the choice to take only one digit from the number 46 while keeping only the 4 in order to “not to be an impersonator of the Doctor. »
Alex Albon
Lando Norris
