An excellent start to the race for Maverick Viñales, all the way down to the red flag. At the restart, the Yamaha rider’s motorcycle went off the grid shortly before the warm-up lap and he had to start from the pit lane at the end of the group.
“To be honest, I’m pretty happy. The first start was fantastic. But then we had to start again and changed the tires. The bike stopped and I don’t know why … It was really weird because I did exactly the same thing that I did on the previous launch.”
What happened in the last few laps?
“I had some problems with the bike. I don’t know why, but the bike moved a lot with every lap. The panel kept showing “pit lane” and I thought something was broken. “
What was the dynamic of not renewing the contract with Yamaha?
“I was the one who said I didn’t want to continue because it wasn’t logical. So it doesn’t make sense. I can’t improve without a solution or explanation. Without someone telling me what’s going on or what to do, I can’t improve. I have no explanation for how I get from first to deficit in qualifying. I can’t be happy like this. It is not worth.”
How did you approach the race weekend with the team after the news of the split from Yamaha?
“I love racing and being on the sidelines. I think I’ve shown that I’m up there with the front if the bike works well. Of course this situation is not exactly the best, but I was fine with my mechanics because I gave everything. “