MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi's first race-winning bike up for auction

Aprilia is dominating MotoGP at present with Marco Bezzecchi leading the 2026 riders’ standings after five rounds, but it was Bezzecchi’s mentor, Valentino Rossi, who made history with the Noale factory 30 years ago.

1996 was Rossi’s first year in the 125cc World Championship, the Italian winning memorably at Brno in his rookie year.

By 2009, of course, Rossi would’ve racked up nine world titles, including two with Aprilia – in the 125cc class in 1997, then in the 250cc class in 1999 before he made the move to the 500cc category and HRC in 2000.

The strength of Rossi’s legacy in MotoGP make all of his bikes iconic to some extent, especially those from the early days, and the days don’t get earlier than year one.

So, it’s no surprise that the AGV-sponsored Aprilia RS125R Rossi rode in 1996 is expected to fetch a fairly hefty price when it’s auctioned by RM Sotheby’s.

Bidding is due to open later this week on 13 May. There is no reserve price on the bike, but it is estimated to go for between €100,000 (£85,000) and €150,000 (£130,000).

After the 1996 season, the bike was sold to a private owner in January 1997. It was sold on again in 2013, since when the ownership of the bike has not changed.

RM Sotheby’s says that the bike also comes with “fascinating factory team sheets that verify each of this bike’s race entries to the 1996 season”. Those race entries include Rossi’s world championship debut at Shah Alam, his first podium in Austria, and that maiden win in Czechia, the engine from which is the one still fitted in the bike now, according to the aforementioned team sheets.

Rossi ended the 1996 season ninth in the riders’ standings. He wouldn’t finish so low in the standings again until 2020 when he scored one podium en route to 15th in that year’s condensed season, which proved to be his last with the factory Yamaha team and his penultimate year of world championship motorcycle racing.