It's been over a year since Valentino Rossi stoo🐟d on a real MotoGP podium, but the nine-time world champion at least claimed his first Virtual rostrum in Sunday's 'home' Misano broadcast.

The result came when Fabio Quartararo, the rider taking Rossi's Monster Yamaha seat next season, fell f💎rom third place at the penultimate corner while sizing up an attack on the race-leading Marquez brothers.

As the Frenchman r𓃲emounted his Petronas Yamaha, Rossi nipped past to snatch third positio𓂃n by a quarter of a second.

"I thought I could try in the last corner🐈, but I wa🐎nted to give the podium to Vale for his home GP!" Quartararo joked.

"Thanks Fabio!" r꧙eplied Rossi, who grabb🐲ed a nearby trophy in celebration.

"Yeah! I'm very happy for this podium because it is an important result in my home grand prix!" he 💯laughed. "I trained this week and I feel better with the 2020 game so I'm very happy for me and my team and for all the fans!"

Rossi had narrowly avoided an accident at thiꦫs start when he was hit from either side by Takaaki Nakagami and Marc Marquez, but then fell soon after w🔯hile trying to overtake Alex Marquez.

Thereafter The Doctor fought his way back up from eighth to fourth🔯, crossing the line 4.687s from race winner Alex Marquez.

"Unfortunately I did one mis🔯take in the first lap, one crash, so I was a bit behind," Rossi said. "But in the last three laps I saw the top three ahea🎐d and tried to keep the good rhythm. On the last lap Fabio did a mistake and… podium!"

Ross🎐i's only previous Virtual race appearan🌠ce had ended with a final-turn crash while trying to take sixth position from Danilo Petrucci.

"I was fast enough this time and qualifying went well. I started from the middl♑e of the second row, in between Maverick and Marc Marquez. The race was good!" he said.

The Misano contest was less successful for Monster Yamaha team-mate Maveric💛k Vinales, who had taken victory at the previous Jerez round.

Like another former Virtual race winner, Francesco Bagnaia🎃, Vinales was involved in the turn one pilꦿe-up at Misano, then suffered more incidents on his way to a subdued sixth place.

"My race didn't go well," he said. "I qualified in fourth place, which wasn‘t bad, but I crashed already in the first corner and then many 🍃more times during the race.

"This time I couldn‘t train, and this caused that result. It's disa♈ppointing, because I wanted to fighಌt at the front again. For sure I will train for the next round and come back stronger!"

Vinales - who unlik💝e Rossi has taken part in every Virtual racꦫe - is now second in the points standings, 15 behind Misano winner Alex Marquez.