At the end of the first day of testing today in Aragon, Maverick Vinales must have thought without a doubt that it would not be a descent. The times he had set at Misano had certainly shaken him up, but today the harsh reality was clear. The Aprilia is a bike with a lot of potential, but also with a character that needs to be understood. Let’s say that the rider and the bike are still on the first base at this moment, while it still seems a long way off to actually wind it up.
The 20th fastest time today isn’t much to boast about, but the fact that he didn’t make any mistakes and also made incremental progress suggests the couple can work. It just won’t happen right away, as some observers have speculated. The M1 and RS-GP are too different to imagine Vinales going at the pace of the best straight away, but the Spaniard has undoubtedly shown the right attitude and will get even closer before Sunday. Maybe even Study of telemetry data tonight, compared to that of Espargarò, will help him understand where today there is a gap of one second between the two Noale drivers.
“I was just thinking about getting used to the bike, which is not as easy as you can imagine – said Vinales – I’ve done some great individual sectors so I’m very positive. We took a big step forward between the first and second sessions, not only in terms of times, but also in terms of my feelings on the bike. I think we’ll do another tomorrow and improve even more. It’s difficult to do well right away in 45 minutes, you don’t have time to make big changes and try, you just think about lapping. The sensations were very positive, the way I have to tackle the route is completely different. It is difficult to do what the bike asks me to do because I was used to doing things differently and for this reason I did not put together my ideal time.
How is this Aprilia different from your previous bike?
“There are so many different things to understand on the bike, including the controls on the handlebars, everything is different, there are a lot of buttons tried to push in one direction and the other and keep making mistakes in all laps. At the moment I don’t ride my bike as much as possible and this is important because at the end of the day we have a good ideal lap, a good rhythm and we have to keep looking at that because I think the key right now is to stay calm and keep working because we are far from the maximum. “
How did you feel this morning when you hit the track for the first time?
“I was very excited this morning, even if I was very nervous in the first session because of course everything is different. But after a couple of laps I just thought about riding and today I did a lot of laps to learn how to ride a bike. I feel like I’m on the right track. I was doing very well in FP2 and above all I improved my benchmarks quite slightly. We didn’t do any particular teamwork, Aleix and I, but I saw his lines that are completely different from what I would have done. “
Where do you think you can make the most progress right now?
“I still brake too early, that’s the main problem, I brake early because I was used to a different driving style, but we’re getting a lot closer. We got close at Misano and here I think we will get closer depending on the day and the training. For me now The hardest part is braking because the acceleration is really good. I still control the slide and that’s not a problem, but I have to get used to the braking area because it is too different from what I’m used to. Overall it makes a difference in lap time, but I think we’ll be driving, doing laps and trusting the front more than anything. It’s fast after only 35 laps on this track and I find it difficult to adapt quickly in just 45 minutes, 45 minutes and a time attack. It’s difficult, but I still think that we have now had a good FP1 and FP2 and have gathered the information. “
What happened when you had this problem on the last corner, it almost felt like the bike was closing the line more than you expected.
“Yeah, I hit the curb. I didn’t expect it to be that dense, I’m not used to it yet. It’s just a matter of getting used to it.”
Are you still using Aleix’s setup or have you made some changes to the Aprilia?
“At the moment we haven’t touched the bike, I’m still riding a standard setup like in Misano. I feel far removed from the bike’s potential, I still have a lot to learn before I can express it to the maximum. From FP1 to FP2 I’ve improved almost a second, I think I have to explore the bike first and don’t want to be in a hurry. It is better to take one step at a time because the lap times are very different from what I was used to. Maybe I’ll try something different tomorrow, maybe another spring or something. Now it’s much more important to me to know the bike than to experiment. “
You weren’t that far away with the lap times. Did you expect that
“I didn’t expect to be that fast because it wasn’t that easy to do with just 40 minutes of practice per session. To learn and understand so many things is not easy. It’s different with tests, because you can take things more calmly and think about the data after every return to the box. It’s hard to improve quickly on a race weekend. But I like the track a lot and think the time is excellent in the end. The ideal times are very good, now I have to bring them all together and take the time that I can. “
This morning you posted a beautiful photo with your daughter and your wife on the track. You had a smile that we’ve seen very little lately.
“I’m happy, I’ve shed some weight that I had. Now I feel like I’m breathing again.”
How do you think you can end this weekend?
“I don’t set myself any goals. I still have a lot of work to do, but I know the sensations are good. I’m happy with that, that’s the really important thing. So I can sleep peacefully, the rest will take care of itself. “
Are you finding this move from Yamaha to Aprilia more difficult than you have been from Suzuki to Yamaha in the past?
“The Yamaha and Suzuki are very similar overall, so the switch wasn’t very difficult. While everything is different now, the engine and the philosophy of the chassis are completely different. They are difficult things to learn quickly. I think I have good potential now and an acceptable pace. It only takes a few steps to complete an excellent individual lap. “