The “secret” Jorge Lorenzo kept from Valentino Rossi in 2015 MotoGP title battle

Jorge Lorenzo has revealed he hid a cryosauna in his motorhome during the 2015 MotoGP title battle and kept it “secret” from Valentino Rossi “to have a competitive advantage”.

Former Yamaha team-mates and arch-rivals Lorenzo and Rossi engaged in many bitter battles throughout their careers.

But none as controversial as the 2015 season, in which Lorenzo won a third MotoGP title in the wake of conspiracy claims from Rossi against Marc Marquez.

The fallout from that season has continued to resonate within the paddock, with that episode hitting headlines again this year on its 10th anniversary.

Speaking with Moto.it, Lorenzo revealed an intriguing secret he kept from Rossi during the 2015 campaign, which proved difficult as both riders’ motorhomes were often placed next to each other in the paddock.

“I invested a lot in my sport,” he began.

“I’ll give you an example to illustrate the level of obsession I had: I bought a motorhome that could be dismantled to my liking, unlike the others that are standard; I could assemble it differently depending on my needs.

“I had a cryosauna installed inside, and I would put myself at -180°C for three minutes after each session to recover.

“We had to find a place where they could make hydrogen very close to the circuit, in each town. My assistant had to travel up to 100km to get it. I did this in 2015.

“I wanted to keep it a secret because they always parked Valentino's motorhome next to me.

“I told my assistant to position it so it couldn't be seen.

“He had to install the hydrogen so no one would see it, not even Valentino's assistant.

“I didn't want anyone to know, not even my manager knew, all this just to keep it a secret and have a competitive advantage.

“I brought a doctor, a physiotherapist, everything, everything.

“I did everything and invested everything to be stronger every day.”

The fallout from the 2015 season and Yamaha’s muted response to Lorenzo’s world title ultimately led the Spaniard to leave for Ducati in 2017.

He retired from MotoGP at the end of 2019, following an injury-hit sole campaign on the factory Honda.

Lorenzo will have a more active role in the paddock next year, as he serves as Maverick Vinales’ rider coach.