MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi has been confirmed to enter the 2026 Bathurst 12 Hour as a part of the WRT BMW line-up, marking his first racing occasion of the 2026 season.
The nine-time Grand Prix Motorbike World Champion has been a part of the WRT steady since retiring from MotoGP and coming into automobile racing full-time in 2022.
When WRT switched to BMW vehicles from 2023, Rossi turned a manufacturing unit driver for the German model and made his debut within the FIA World Endurance Championship the next yr.
Nonetheless, after simply two years in WEC, Rossi’s withdrawal from the sequence was confirmed earlier this month when WRT introduced its line-up for the 2026 season.
Rossi’s racing plans for 2026 are at present unknown, however his participation within the Bathurst 12 Hour race is confirmed.
He will probably be behind the wheel of the No. 46 WRT BMW M4 GT3 Evo alongside Augusto Farfus and Raffaele Marciello.
Rossi shared a automobile with Falfus on the 2023 Bathurst 12 Hour race, ending sixth, whereas Marciello helped the No. 46 automobile to a second-place end on the 2025 race earlier this yr.
Charles Wierts, who drove with Rossi at Bathurst this yr, will transfer to the No. 32 automobile together with Jordan Pepper and Rossi’s former WEC teammate Kelvin van der Linde, whereas the No. 89 automobile will probably be pushed by Max Hesse, Maxim Austen and Ruan Cunfang.
The 2026 Bathurst 12 Hour Race will probably be Rossi’s third look in recent times, having solely competed within the 2025 Bathurst and Spa 24 Hours within the Intercontinental GT Problem.
Rossi competed full seasons in 2023 and 2024 and is anticipated to return to a full-time marketing campaign in 2026 at GT World Problem Europe.
He scaled again his GTWCE appearances in 2025 to focus extra on WEC, but additionally to deepen his dedication to his MotoGP crew and prioritize his household.
Rossi received the GTWCE Dash Cup in Misano final season.
The MotoGP legend’s WEC participation noticed him rating 4 podiums within the No. 46 BMW M4 GT3, together with two second at Imola and a finest outcome within the LMGT3 class at COTA.
Each participations within the 24 Hours of Le Mans resulted in retirement.
The #46 automobile was in competition for victory within the 2025 version of the long-lasting enduro, however in a single day it encountered a heartbreaking mechanical failure.
