Valentino Rossi, Pecco Bagnaia among MotoGP stars to ride at Misano race

A number of Italian MotoGP riders – and ex-riders in the case of Valentino Rossi – hit the track at Misano last weekend during the CIV round there ahead of the grand prix season’s resumption in August.

MotoGP has been on its summer break since the German Grand Prix finished at the Sachserning on 12 July, but is still just under two weeks away from returning to action at Silverstone on 7–9 August.

In the meantime, the Italian CIV championship has had its now-annual night race weekend at Misano, utilising the adriatic tracks floodlights.

The races saw Alessandro Delbianco victorious in Race 1 and wildcard Lukas Tulovic on the top step in Race 2 as Delbianco didn’t make the end of lap one.

The Thursday before the race, though, saw a number of grand prix riders on-track, all from the VR46 Riders Academy, which has made Misano its main hub for on-bike training, whether to use its main circuit for full-size bikes like the Yamaha R1 or Ducati Panigale V4 or the Misanino circuit for minibike and kart practice.

Naturally, the roster included nine-time champion Valentino Rossi, as well as three-time world champion Francesco Bagnaia, 2017 Moto2 world champion Franco Morbidelli, and multiple-time Moto2 winners Luca Marini and Celestino Vietti.

Four-time MotoGP winner in 2026 Marco Bezzecchi was not present on-track at Misano as his recovery from the injuries, including a fractured collarbone, that he sustained in his Q2 crash at the Sachsenring which ruled him out of the races at round 11. 

Bezzecchi has already stated his intention to be back on the MotoGP grid at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix in early August. He will head to Britain next month 22 points behind his Aprilia Racing team-mate Jorge Martin who has led since Assen, when Bezzecchi crashed out while chasing Marc Marquez on the second lap.