Note: All of this is based on what is being said as very few ‘hard’ facts exist.
Rossi has a very big decision to make over the next two weeks, probably even bigger than when he chose to leave Honda. Rossi must decided whether he remains with Ducati, a bike that has caused him problems for two years, or if he returns to Yamaha, the bike that saw him win in 04,05,08 and 09.
As it stands the Ducati offer looks something like this: 12-17 Million Euros, Rossi can keep his current crew and can have a personal sponsor on the side of his Ducati.
The Yamaha offer is reported to look like: 4 Million Euro per year, big doubt as to whether Rossi could keep his crew and he must bring a sponsor to the team (most likely Monster).
Rossi has said that money is no object and as such there two biggest issues become the crew and the need of a sponsor if he does wish to go to Yamaha.
Rossi’s crew have been with him since the start, before Rossi they were with Doohan and Daryl Beattie, they’re regarded as the best mechanical team in the world. This is not something that one easily leaves behind. Also, riders develop a language with their team, able to explain specific problems with simple hand motions, relations such as this take time to build. Having to leave behind his Aussie (and Kiwi) crew would be a devastating blow to Valentino, one which may swing his decision in a certain way.
The other major factor, and perhaps more importantly, is the need of sponsorship at Yamaha. If Rossi stays at Ducati he needs to bring no sponsors to the table, at Yamaha he needs to bring a significant sponsor. While Rossi may be happy to take the pay cut the sponsor (presumed to be Monster) may not wish to foot the bill especially when they can get similar exposure for far less on the side of a Ducati machine. Monster sells drinks, not bikes, and drink sales don’t depend on results, they’re based around the personalities who ‘drink’ them.
Ducati’s option to offer personal sponsorship seems to be a move designed exclusively to temp Monster away from Yamaha, offering a cheaper alternative with similar advertising ability. Monster already sponsor a full team in MotoGP, a team regularly near the front, and get decent exposure due to that. If Monster choose to not pay Yamaha and instead sponsor Rossi with an increased pressure this may result in it being impossible for Rossi to gain the Yamaha seat as the key aspect of ‘bring a sponsor to the team’ would be lacking. Simply having Rossi in photos drinking an ice cold Monster Energy Drink may be enough for the energy drink giant as opposed to having him racing up the front with the iconic M covering the side of his bike.
The decision of Monster may take the choice entirely out of Rossi’s hands. Finding a new sponsor would be incredibly hard considering Europe’s economic state. Even if Monster are happy to offer up the money, the threat of having to leave behind his crew may make the Yamaha offer less attractive than it first appears.
Credit to http://www.superbikeplanet.com/ and Motomatters.com for the Ducati and Yamaha offers.
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