Valentino Rossi unveils limited edition leathers and helmet for milestone birthday

Seven-time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi has unveiled a limited edition special edition Dainese leather suit and AGV helmet to mark his 46th birthday.

The MotoGP legend turned 46 on Sunday 16 February, bringing his age in line with the iconic #46 he rode with throughout his motorcycle racing career.

Rossi used the #46 for all nine of his grand prix world titles - including his seven in the premier class - and continues to use it in his car racing career.

To mark a special birthday for the Doctor, he has collaborated with Dainese and AGV for a limited edition set of leathers and crash helmet.

The ultra-rare pieces are numbered to #46.

In a brief video posted on Dainese’s social media channels, Rossi said: “I always wanted to share the most important stories in my life through my helmets and my suits.

“I’ve always been the racing rider with the number 46. And you only turn 46 once. So, how else could I have celebrated, if not in the usual way?”

The suit and helmet feature Rossi’s iconic moon and sun design, but with much of his usual yellow colouring replaced by gold.

Rossi isn’t new to limited edition clothing merchandise, having released a series of t-shirts over the last year celebrating all of his grand prix world titles.

Read more: Inside Valentino Rossi's chase for his long-awaited tenth world title

The Italian enjoyed an early birthday present earlier this month when he finished second in the Bathurst 12 Hour endurance race with BMW.

It marked his first podium at the event.

Rossi will focus his car racing efforts on the World Endurance Championship this year with WRT as a factory BMW driver in the LMGT3 class.

Having also competed at Bathurst, which is not part of the WEC schedule, Rossi is set to contest other one-off events alongside his WEC commitments.

He will begin 2025 pre-season preparations this weekend in Qatar at the two-day WEC Prologue, before the campaign begins in the country next week with the Qatar 1812Km.

In MotoGP, Rossi’s team will have factory support from Ducati this season on Fabio Di Giannantonio’s side of the garage, while welcoming Franco Morbidelli to the outfit for the first time on a GP24.

Di Giannantonio missed most of the pre-season after injuring his collarbone on day one of the Sepang test following an incident during the end-of-day practice start session.