Valentino Rossi completes 40,075 kilometres on the race track

MANILA: Most people who follow motorsports might be well acquainted with Valentino Rossi, the MotoGP icon, and his staggering career. The icon has had all the possible milestones added to his golden career so much that people wonder if at all he has anything else to conquer.

However, Valentino Rossi, the mighty Italian MotoGP rider, has added a unique feather to his cap. At the Spanish Grand Prix, which concluded recently, the nine-time world champion has completed 40,075 kilometres of racing when he was at Lap number 15. If you are wondering why is this number so significantly held up as a silver lining in his career, let us tell you - this is the exact circumference of the planet earth. Yes, the rider has completed the distance equivalent to completing an entire ride around the earth.

Moreover, this unique achievement is even more special and just a bit more extraordinary considering that the entire distance covered was clocked only during the racing event that he has been into and does include any of the practice rides or qualifiers at all. There are few other highlights that make it even better, like the fact that has had two decades (23 years) of competitiveness and is still being one of the best in the business. Further, his racing career is as long as the actual age of Marc Marquez of Spain, who is the present champion.

However, it has been a little disappointing for the fans of Valentino Rossi that he could not finish as a winner in this Spanish Grand Prix, which would have made the achievement sweeter. He finished at the 5th position, while Marc Marquez took the trophy.

Valentino Rossi is a legend in the MotoGP world for his achievements till date in all the 23 Grand Prix seasons and has secured a win in 115 races. Moreover, he has also had 228 podium finishes in his entire career. Statistically, he had completed 8,730 laps when he was on the 15th lap of the Spanish Grand Prix.