Rossi in at the deep end on maiden four-wheel drive

Valentino Rossi, if you don't know your motorcycling, may sound a little like a carafe of Tuscan house wine. Rally devotees, however, will get to know the Italian much better this weekend when he attempts to make the transition to four wheels in the forests of south Wales.

Rossi, who won his fourth world motorcycling title in September in Schumacher style with four races remaining, will be making his debut in the most difficult rally of all. And he will be grimly aware that only one man in history has proved supreme on two wheels and four.

John Surtees was already a motorcycle multi-champion when he was lured into the exotic world of formula one. But here, too, he proved a master, taking the world title in 1964.

Rossi, like many people, finds the modern world of formula one less than alluring.

"I don't like it very much. There is no overtaking and it's all about strategy, the start, lap times and qualifying. If you take out Schumacher, and maybe Villeneuve and Montoya, all the riders are the same level. And computers even decide what gear you're in."

Rallying, though, has always appealed to his competitive instincts. His father, Graziano, himself a successful grand prix motorcyclist in the 70s, was also a keen rally driver and still competes in a Mitsubishi Evo and does hill climbs in a Sierra Cosworth.

"My father was a good rally driver at Italian level and made some world championship races. He built me a go-kart when I was five and I was racing on four wheels by the time I was 10. My father was always worried about me on bikes so he tried to put me in a kart all the time."

Rossi senior recalls: "We also had old Ford Escorts and Opel Asconas. [Valentino] was always fast. The ground was great for learning and there was not so much grip so he'd be sideways all the time."

Valentino, 23, is likely to reacquaint himself with that sideways feeling driving his Peugeot on the winding and wintry forest tracks near Cardiff this weekend.

"I know this is a very difficult rally. I have not driven there but I have seen it on TV and in magazines. I know there is lots of fog and mud and maybe ice and snow, too. And Colin [McRae] has told me how hard it is.

"He tells me it is not a good idea to make this my first rally. He has even offered to help and said I can go in a car with him. But I have seen him drive and I think that would be dangerous."

After his first run in his Peugeot 206, in the mountains above the ageing opulence of San Remo's vast bay in northern Italy, Rossi, said: "I started slow but got quick. At first I saw the trees but by my third run I could see only the track.

"It feels safer than on motorcycles. I close the door and I feel protected. I feel the belt, the cage, the whole car. On a bike a little mistake can mean a crash. It is more dangerous. The difficulty in a car is judging the braking point.

"I also don't really enjoy driving in the dark. But the most complicated thing of all is learning about the pace notes from my co-driver, Carlo Cassina. Bike riders don't have co-drivers.

"With a bike, the feeling is closer. I'm part of the bike. It's a very close relationship. I help the bike when we are turning."

Rossi's adventure has been made possible by Michelin, which provides his tyres whether he wants them two or four at a time. Ideally he would not be starting his competitive rallying career this week, but this is his only window in a hectic two-wheel schedule. If he survives, he is likely to win a small but curious following.

"The worst thing for me would be to make a mistake and go out at the beginning. After all this work that would be terrible. I'm not going to win, because the best 15 racers come from a different planet from me. But I don't know the level of the other riders. I think it would be great if I just finish. But I want to do more than that."