Maverick Vinales, winner of the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday, said he was pleasantly surprised to find that new Yamaha test rider Cal Crutchlow has a similar riding style and bike setup to him.
This means that the feedback and ideas from the Englishman are particularly relevant for Vinales, who can also concentrate more on the race weekends.
“Cal has worked very hard with the bike and especially the way Cal rides is very much like me and helps me understand a lot of things. He gave us some advice that was good for the race,” said Vinales.
“We drive very similarly, honestly,” he added. “I was pretty surprised because on the last day of the [Qatar] Test I’ve tried his bike and it fits me perfectly. It helped me focus on the race and not try the new things.
“This is a completely different mentality than last year when we sometimes had to test a lot of things. I wish everything had worked, but usually nothing works if you try on the race weekend!
“Now we’re calmer because we know when Cal is going to say that’s good, it’s really good.
On the subject of matching items
“Cal understands the potential of the bike very well and he understands very well where we need to go. I can’t wait to take another test with Cal and work with him to try and improve.
“We have the same ideas, the same feeling on the bike, and that’s fantastic.
“I’m sure Cal will have another test in the next few days and we’ll be working on the bike’s power transmission in particular.”
Vinales, who moved up from sixth to first place last Sunday, will try to achieve a perfect double in Qatar in the second round of this weekend.