Speaking for the first time to the media since the announcement of his upcoming arrival in the KTM group, and more precisely in the Tech3 team, Maverick Viñales gave his explanation on a choice which may seem surprising, that of abandoning the Aprilia with which he has only just started winning.
The Spanish rider first explained that he followed his instincts to opt for this change, he who had joined the Noale team during the 2021 season after his resounding divorce from Yamaha. By this he means that he saw the potential of the KTM and its ability to take the lead on the grid in the seasons to come.
“One of the main reasons is that I followed my instinct,” Viñales explained, approaching the issue with great seriousness. “I saw a little bit of what was going to happen in the future, the bike I would have to be on, and I felt like it was the right thing to do. Seeing the potential I had in Austin and not being able to repeat it in other races, that also meant something and that also weighed a lot in my decision.”
“It’s a challenge that I want to take on and I really want to succeed. I put everything into performance and driving, and I think it was the best choice I could make for a project.”
If he followed his instinct, does that mean he believes more in the direction KTM is taking today than in the work carried out by Aprilia? “It’s hard to understand who’s doing better or worse, and it wouldn’t be right for me to say who’s better or worse because I’ve only been here for the last four years so I can’t judge person”, he replied.
“I just tried to understand what would be best for me and I saw it very clearly. It’s hard to say anything else because my decision was based on trying to understand what would be the next motorcycle [dominante] in the championship, and that’s what I saw, so that’s the reason.”
A carefully considered decision
The day after the Italian GP, when Aprilia announced the signing of Jorge Martin, Massimo Rivola regretted not having had time to inform Maverick Viñales and he still hoped to keep him in the team. The fact is, however, that the Spaniard had already temporized several times and, today, he indicated that he had already made his choice at that time and therefore had not reacted out of vexation.
“My decision, I was thinking about it since Jerez. To continue, I didn’t really feel it”, he explained, returning to the way in which his victory at the GP of the Americas could have had a counter-effect since he was not able to repeat this dominating performance on the other tracks. “After Austin, I was a bit in shock about what I was capable of doing but if it’s just one race out of 20, I don’t like it. I would like to do it a lot more because that I think I can.”
“I thought about it a lot. Obviously, with the market moving so quickly… I wanted to be a little calmer, get to the summer and have a lot of time, but seeing that Aprilia had also been quick to sign Jorge … Obviously, Jorge and Maverick could have made a very good team but I had already cleared my mind before Mugello I’m happy for the team, that’s for sure, because they’re going to have Martín and Marco. [Bezzecchi]good luck to them !”
