Motorsports: Meet-up with Valentino Rossi leaves mark on teen Pinoy superbiker | ABS-CBN

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Motorsports: Meet-up with Valentino Rossi leaves mark on teen Pinoy superbiker

Motorsports: Meet-up with Valentino Rossi leaves mark on teen Pinoy superbiker

Mye Mulingtapang,

ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau

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Valentino Rossi with TJ Alberto. Courtesy of TJ Alberto's Facebook

Filipino superbike racer TJ Alberto said meeting MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi gave him a good dose of motivation as he continues to hone his riding skills as part of the Italian MotorCorsa Team.

Last month, the 19-year-old met Rossi at his VR46 Riders Academy in his hometown Tavullia, Italy, with other riders such as Marco Bezzechi, Mattia Pasini and Franco Morbideli.

“Meeting Valentino Rossi is a great opportunity and has motivated me to work hard on my training and technique so I can pursue my dream of becoming a world champion someday like Valentino,” Alberto said, adding that he was also impressed by the Italians’ commitment and passion for motosports.

“The motoranch is something completely different than anything I’ve tried. It's a very difficult surface but you can see from this why the Italians are so good in their discipline,” said Alberto.

Rossi has previously said during his most recent visit to the Philippines that he he hopes to one day train local prospects in his academy. He is a 7-time MotoGP champion initially for Honda then for Yamaha.

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“We’re working together with Yamaha in the academy for young riders,” said 7-time MotoGP champion known as “The Doctor.” “If we discover some fast rider in the Philippines, we can bring him there.”

Alberto, a newcomer to the MotorCorsa Team, is the only Filipino among the 34 superbike racers in the Italian National Superbike Racing.

He has been flying back and forth from the Philippines to Italy to compete in both local and Italian races.

The Campionato Italiano Velocità (CIV) is possibly Alberto’s entry point to the world stage, even as he continues to compete in the Philippine superbike (PSBK) championships.

“It's been really tough jumping from the CIV bike to the PSBK and so on, but I am always up to the challenge,” Alberto said.

CIV 2017 is divided into 12 rounds with 6 weekend races held at the best Italian circuits. It started on April 22, takes a break in August then runs again until October 8.

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