"No one has answers" to Vinales’ worst-ever MotoGP weekend
Yamaha’s Maverick Vinales says “no-one has answers” to the form which led to his worst-ever MotoGP race weekend, after finishing the German Grand Prix in last place.
Vinales registered his worst-ever qualifying in MotoGP with 21st on Saturday at the Sachsenring and could make no inroads into the points on Sunday.
Having found it “impossible” to pass a brace of Avintia Ducatis on the outer reaches of the points, Vinales wound up 19th and last of the classified runners having backed off late on to “get some data” on how his Yamaha worked in clean air.
The Yamaha rider has struggled for form since winning the opening round in Qatar, and has been working with a new crew chief in ex-Valentino Rossi ally Silvano Galbusera since Barcelona.
Pleased with how he felt on the bike after the Barcelona test, Vinales says nobody at Yamaha has any answers for his form in Germany while team-mate Fabio Quartararo finished third.
Maverick Vinales, Yamaha Factory Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
“I have the same question as you, so I cannot answer,” Vinales replied when asked by Autosport to explain his woes.
“Nobody has answered to me, so I cannot answer.”
He added: “I take like 15 laps behind [Luca] Marini and [Enea] Bastianini.
“I could not pass them, it was impossible with this bike. So, I prepared really well the downhill, they have more power, can brake later.
“So, with this bike it’s impossible. When I arrived to Franco [Morbidelli] I could overtake quite good, just in the first try I overtake.
“But on another Yamaha it’s much easier, but with the Ducatis it’s so hard.
“So, basically when I spent 10 laps there I see maybe my position was 13th, I said ‘Ok, I drop back, get fresh air and try to get some data and see how the bike is working alone’.
“I could make 1m22s low at the end of the race, which was not bad, while behind them I was doing 1m23.5s.
“So, it was a bit different, but overall I don’t know.
“Nobody has the answers of what is going on here, so I need to keep working, we have Assen that even with Moto2 bike I can be fast.
“So, I will try to do the maximum.”
Vinales says he won’t change his current approach next weekend at Assen, but dejectedly admitted right now “my job is to collect data”.
“I don’t know what is going to happen, it’s very difficult to say,” he said.
“For Assen, I will do the same as I’m doing here: work, try to collect data.
“Right now my job is to collect data. It’s sad, but it’s like this, so I cannot do much more. I’m sorry.”
Related video
Marquez: Hard to block memories of injury in Germany MotoGP win charge
Marc Marquez: Germany MotoGP win "makes up for the suffering"
Marquez “will be professional” to the end of Honda MotoGP deal
Alex Marquez says he will remain “professional” through to the end of his Honda MotoGP contract with LCR despite recently admitting a loss of motivation at the team.
Retiring MotoGP ace Dovizioso "really didn't expect" Yamaha struggles
Retiring 15-time MotoGP race winner Andrea Dovizioso admits he "really didn't expect" to encounter the struggles he has in adapting to the Yamaha MotoGP bike.
2022 MotoGP title fight now “very tight”, says Aleix Espargaro
Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro believes the current MotoGP championship picture following the British Grand Prix has set up “a very, very tight” title battle.
Pol Espargaro doesn’t think Honda is reacting to MotoGP woes
Pol Espargaro isn’t sure the problems Honda is facing at races in MotoGP this season are being relayed back to Japan as “we’re not getting the material we need”.
The signs Quartararo’s 2022 MotoGP title is slipping away from him
Prior to the summer break, the 2022 MotoGP title looked like it was Fabio Quartararo’s to lose. But a crash at Assen and the consequential penalty he had to serve last weekend at Silverstone stopped him from capitalising on a main rival’s injury woes, while a resurgence from another, plus the rise of a former team-mate, look set to conspire against the Yamaha rider
Why Marquez’s toughest MotoGP foe is stopping at the right time
On the eve of the British Grand Prix, Andrea Dovizioso announced that he will be retiring from MotoGP after September’s San Marino GP. The timing of his departure raised eyebrows, but his reasoning remains sensible and what has happened this year should not diminish a hard-built legacy
Why a Suzuki refugee feels he deserves MotoGP's toughest challenge
Alex Rins’ MotoGP future was plunged into sudden doubt when Suzuki elected to quit the series at the end of 2022. Securing a deal with Honda to join LCR, he will now tread a path that many have fallen off from. But it was a move he felt his status deserved, and it’s a challenge – he tells Autosport - he faces with his eyes wide open…
How Formula 1 has driven MotoGP's changing nature
The hiring of technicians from Formula 1 has clearly contributed to a recent change in the MotoGP landscape, with the role of engineers gaining greater significance relative to the riders. Here's how this shift has come about
The revolution behind Aprilia's rise from MotoGP tail-ender to pack-leader
Coinciding with the arrival of Massimo Rivola as head of its MotoGP division, Aprilia has undergone an internal revolution that has spurred it from occupying last place in the team standings to leading the table in the space of just two years. Those entrenched in the project reveal how the ex-Ferrari F1 chief has achieved the dramatic turnaround
The battle Yamaha's wayward son is fighting to be fast again in MotoGP
Franco Morbidelli was long overdue a promotion to factory machinery when it finally came late last year, having finished runner-up in the 2020 standings on an old Yamaha package. But since then the Italian has been a shadow of his former self as he toils to adapt to the 2022 M1, and recognises that he needs to change his style to be quick on it
Why Honda and Yamaha have been left behind in MotoGP's new era
The once all-conquering Japanese manufacturers are going through a difficult period in MotoGP this season. With Suzuki quitting, Honda struggling to get near the podium and Yamaha only enjoying success courtesy of Fabio Quartararo, Japanese manufacturers have been left in the dust by their European counterparts. Key paddock figures explain why.
Who is Valentino Rossi’s newest MotoGP star?
Valentino Rossi’s protégés stole the show at Assen as Francesco Bagnaia stormed to victory to arrest a recent barren run. But it was the rider in second, on Bagnaia’s old bike, who had all eyes on him. Securing his and the VR46 team’s first MotoGP podium, Marco Bezzecchi has all the characteristics that made his mentor special