Manuel Sete Gibernau Bultó (born December 15, 1972 in Barcelona) is a Spanish former MotoGP rider, currently residing in Switzerland.
When focussed, he was a match for Valentino Rossi, or faster. However, flair and consistency win more championships than flair alone, and he was all too often let down by an apparently sensitive or temperamental nature. In-race setbacks could disproportionately affect his competitiveness, both negatively and positively. His career started slowly until he found his motivation and his intermittent flair became consistent. Then he was the principal challenger for Rossi's crown until 2005. 2006 brought a series of emotional, technical, and injury set-backs, apparently sapping his motivation. It culminated in a major mid-season no-fault racing incident which effectively eliminated him from the championship. The Ducati Marlboro team replaced him with Casey Stoner for 2007. He turned down offers from Kawasaki, Sito Pons and Ilmor team and decided to retire from all forms of motorcycle racing. He was arguably one of the best riders in MotoGP never to have won the title.
It was a great time when Sete was riding in the MotoGP. Rumors are up that he could join the championchip again as a rider for the Marlboro Ducati team (he did several tests for them this season). I would love to see him back on a motogp-machine, his battles with Rossi where just amazing.
Oh and not to forget, very great piece!