Maverick Viñales hits rock bottom and criticizes Yamaha: "It's been a shame, I'm not here to be a tester"
Maverick Viñales's in Germany could have been his worst Grand Prix since he was a MotoGP rider. The Spaniard started the race from the penultimate position on the grid, but he finished the last of those who managed to reach the checkered flag. A nineteenth position that is the worst result for him without falling since he has run in the world championship, in any category.
Viñales's statements on Saturday afternoon, before the race, were passive-aggressive, without wanting to explain his feelings, but on Sunday he exploded, showing again that his disconnection from Yamaha is total. He also has a contract for next season, but the situation is becoming unsustainable.
"I've been using someone else's setup for two years and I'm never going to win like that"
The Yamaha thing at Sachsenring was very strange. While Fabio Quartararo was on the podium, the rest of the brand's bikes practically did not appear. Valentino Rossi was fourteenth, a fairly common result for him lately, but Franco Morbidelli and Maverick Viñales finished penultimate and last.
At Motorpasion MotoAmazon Prime Day 2021: the best deals on motorcycle equipment and accessoriesAfter something so humiliating for a rider who, let's not forget, has won nine MotoGP races and knows what it's like to go fast, Viñales exploded: "It was a disaster, a shame. I was about to go to the box," he told the finish the race at Sachsenring. And it is that the departure from Yamaha is more than evident.
The man from Girona said that "I always have the same problem, and it's that I spin a lot. My rear wheel spins a lot, I've been saying it since Portimao, and there's no solution. It's true that we're working, but it's already been six races to find a solution. I try to be calm, I try to work, do everything, but the result is the same".
A few weeks ago Viñales decided to change his technical chief, replacing Esteban García with Silvano Galbusera, Valentino Rossi's ex, but it seems that even this change is not helping him. In fact, the technical line that they have decided for Viñales at the Sachsenring seems to have unhinged the Catalan.
"Yamaha is a constant 'I don't know.' They ask me to use the Quartararo configuration, I've been using the rival's configuration for two years. It can't be. I'm not going to adapt, I want a bike for myself," he exploded.
Viñales uncovered all of Yamaha's internal plan explaining that "they ask me to go out and collect data, but I'm not here to be a test rider. It seems disrespectful. I'm never going to win with someone else's configuration". The divorce between both parties seems closer every day, whatever the contracts say.
In fact, in the paddock there is a rumor, still not very intense, that says Maverick Viñales is considering quitting racing at the end of this season. He just became a father, he had a couple of big scares last season at the Red Bull Ring and running to collect data is not worth it. But he says that he does not intend to give up.
What seems obvious at this point is that Viñales' riding style is not suited to a bike as docile as the Yamaha, which trusts everything to cornering. After years in the shadow of Rossi, Yamaha has found a new beacon to guide them, and his name is Fabio Quartararo. Iwata is no longer Viñales' home, if he ever was. And outside of him there is not much free space.
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