Valentino Rossi leaves WEC after just two seasons, BMW announces

MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi’s time in the FIA World Endurance Championship will not extend to a third season, as BMW confirms it has dropped him from its LMGT3 line-up.

The nine-time grand prix motorcycle world champion stepped into full-time car racing in 2022, following the end of his MotoGP career.

He teamed up with WRT to race in the GT World Challenge, before making his FIA WEC debut in 2024 with the Belgian outfit as a factory BMW driver.

Driving car No.46, Rossi scored a first podium at Imola in just his second WEC event and was third later in the season at Fuji.

He was second again at Imola in 2025, though contact and a subsequent penalty denied him his best opportunity to take a maiden win in the series.

A stellar qualifying performance at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans led to the No.46 WRT BMW staging a legitimate assault on LMGT3 class victory at the iconic enduro.

But an electrical issue during the night, which meant the car became “unsafe” to drive, led to a non-finish for the second year in a row. The car was second at COTA a few months later.

Rossi’s future in the WEC had been in question for some time, with it looking likely that he would be dropped from BMW’s roster at WRT for 2026.

WRT has now confirmed Rossi will not form part of its WEC line-up next year, with the No.46 car replaced by the No.69 of Anthony McIntosh, Dan Harper and Parker Thompson.

Rossi’s current three-year BMW factory deal does expire at the end of this year, though he noted at points through 2025 that he was keen to advance to WEC’s Hypercar class.

It’s unclear what the future holds for Rossi, though reports suggest a return to GT World Challenge Europe.

Rossi has three sprint wins in the GTWCE.

While he scaled back his racing commitments in 2025, Rossi still took part in the Bathurst 12 Hours and 24 Hours of Spa, with the Italian netting a podium in the former.

Ahead of the 2025 WEC finale in Bahrain, Rossi helped the No.46 car to victory in the Indianapolis 8 Hours of the Intercontinental GT Challenge.