In his 21st season in the premier class, @ValeYellow46 is set to continue his legacy next year! https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🙌" title="Raising hands" aria-label="Emoji: Raising hands">

So let& #39;s go back to the start to appreciate how far he& #39;s come https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👇" title="Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten" aria-label="Emoji: Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten">

#MotoGP

It all started out back in the 500s https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="⏪" title="Nach links zeigendes doppeltes Dreieck" aria-label="Emoji: Nach links zeigendes doppeltes Dreieck">

His first premier class title in 2001 made him the last rider to win the Championship as a satellite rider up until this point... https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👀" title="Augen" aria-label="Emoji: Augen">

#MotoGP

Full factory stardom awaited as the call up to the Repsol Honda Team paved way for two further titles in 2002 and 2003 https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🏆" title="Trophäe" aria-label="Emoji: Trophäe">https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🏆" title="Trophäe" aria-label="Emoji: Trophäe">

Now 3 in a row https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="💪" title="Angespannter Bizeps" aria-label="Emoji: Angespannter Bizeps">

#MotoGP

A shock switch to Yamaha for 2004 was doubted by many https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👀" title="Augen" aria-label="Emoji: Augen">

But with one of the greatest stories in our sport, @ValeYellow46 won his first race with Yamaha, becoming the only rider in the #MotoGP era to win back-to-back races with different manufacturers https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🔄" title="Pfeile abwärts und aufwärts in offenem Kreis gegen den Uhrzeigersinn" aria-label="Emoji: Pfeile abwärts und aufwärts in offenem Kreis gegen den Uhrzeigersinn">

The Yamaha years came to a temporary end as Rossi switched to Ducati for 2011 https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🇮🇹" title="Flagge von Italien" aria-label="Emoji: Flagge von Italien">

An Italian on an Italian bike... the headlines were all there but victory eluded The Doctor for two years https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="😢" title="Weinendes Gesicht" aria-label="Emoji: Weinendes Gesicht">

#MotoGP

The return to Yamaha and winning ways https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="❤️" title="Rotes Herz" aria-label="Emoji: Rotes Herz">

The famous number 46 of #MotoGP won at the 2013 #DutchGP, 46 races after his last win at the 2010 #MalaysianGP https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🏆" title="Trophäe" aria-label="Emoji: Trophäe">

The victory also took him to 4646 career points! Some things are meant to be... https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✨" title="Funken" aria-label="Emoji: Funken">

So here we are then. 25 seasons deep and @ValeYellow46 has just signed up for another https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👏" title="Applaus-Zeichen" aria-label="Emoji: Applaus-Zeichen">

At 41 years of age, The Doctor isn& #39;t showing any signs of slowing down https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🙌" title="Raising hands" aria-label="Emoji: Raising hands">

#MotoGP