Luca Marini  Luca Marini (born 10 August 1997 in Urbino) is an Italian motorcycle racer. He is the maternal half-brother of Valentino Rossi. Marini made his début in the Moto3 World Championship at the 2013 San Marino and Rimini's Coast motorcycle Grand Prix as a wildcard, failing to finish the race. In 2015 he got another wildcard entry at the same place, this time in the Moto2 class with Pons Racing Junior Team aboard a Kalex, finishing the race in 21st place. For 2016 Marini was signed by the Forward Team to compete full-time in the same class; he got his first Grand Prix points in Qatar, where he finished in 10th place, and his best result in Germany, where he had a 6th place. Marini still remained with the team for 2017. In 2018, Marini achieved his first podium in Germany and his first victory in Malaysia. In 2019, he secured two podiums in Mugello and Assen, leading towards back-to-back wins at Thailand and Japan.