LORIS CAPIROSSI TO BE NAMED A MOTO GP LEGEND AT MISANO ON SATURDAY

Loris Capirossi will be inducted as the next “MotoGP Legend” at a special ceremony during the Misano round this Saturday, an honour organisers say recognises both his on-track achievements and his wider contribution to Grand Prix racing.

The 53-year-old Italian’s career began with immediate impact. In 1990, at just 17 years old, he won the 125cc world title in his rookie season, riding for Pileri with a Honda and as a team-mate of former champion Fausto Gresini. He successfully defended the crown the following year before stepping up to the 250cc class in 1992.

After moving through the 500cc ranks, Capirossi took his first win in the premier class in 1996. He later returned to the 250cc category and secured his third world title in 1998, a championship remembered in particular for a controversial season finale against his then-Aprilia team-mate Tetsuya Harada.

Capirossi’s return to the top level came in 2000, when he became a permanent fixture in the premier class. In his first season with Pons Honda, he won immediately and finished third in the 500cc world championship standings behind Kenny Roberts Jr and Valentino Rossi.

As MotoGP’s era developed, the sources note that in 2002 Capirossi had to contend with the performance gap of two-stroke machinery against the growing strength of four-stroke bikes. Ducati then brought him into its new project for 2003, a decision that would shape one of the most memorable chapters of his career. In 2003, at the Catalunya Grand Prix in Barcelona, Capirossi delivered the Desmosedici’s first MotoGP victory—an achievement described as pivotal to the development of the later successful Ducati programme.

He remained in the title picture in the mid-2000s, mixing it up again in the 2006 championship fight and finishing the season on third overall. His seventh and final MotoGP win on Ducati came in 2007 at Motegi, on the same weekend that team-mate Casey Stoner secured the first MotoGP world title for the Borgo Panigale manufacturer.

After switching to Suzuki for 2008, Capirossi took what would become his final podium at Brno that season. In his last MotoGP campaign, he returned to a Desmosedici with a ride at Pramac.

The report highlights the emotional nature of his final grand prix at Valencia: it was his 328th and last race, and he rode with the number 58 instead of his usual 65. The gesture was made in memory of his fellow countryman Marco Simoncelli, who died at the previous Sepang round.

Beyond racing, Capirossi has continued his involvement in MotoGP. Since retiring from competition, he has served as the series’ Safety Advisor for more than a decade, drawing on his long experience to support safety in the championship.

The “MotoGP Legend” designation is presented as broader than race results alone, acknowledging the role a rider has played in shaping the sport. Alongside Capirossi’s induction, a separate “MotoGP Hall of Fame” initiative was launched in 2025 for riders who have won 500cc/MotoGP world championships and/or achieved 25 or more premier-class grands prix.

Capirossi will join an existing group of Italian riders already inducted as MotoGP Legends, including Giacomo Agostini, Valentino Rossi, Andrea Dovizioso, Marco Simoncelli, Max Biaggi, Franco Uncini, Marco Lucchinelli, Umberto Masetti and Carlo Ubbiali.