Maverick Viñales separated from Yamaha in the middle of 2021 to join Aprilia in MotoGP, a risky move in which he switched from a constructor that was fighting for titles at the time to one that had not yet shown strong results. The progress since he arrived has been remarkable, culminating in a 1-2 finish at the Catalunya GP.
The Spanish rider confessed in a press conference that his teammate, Aleix Espargaró, was important in his decision, which is now bearing fruit: ‘Three years ago we were talking in his motorhome [Espargaró]. I wasn’t sure, because ultimately it’s always difficult to make a move like this. I had very good contracts, and in the end I bet on myself, I bet on Aprilia. Of course, Aleix had a lot of weight, because in the end two good riders, two strong riders, can achieve much more than one and that’s what we’re doing: we’re pushing the factory.’
E Viñales gave an example: ‘In the end, you can see how much we pushed the factory in Austria to bring something to Barcelona for the start and they did it. That’s good: they have a quick response. Step by step, I think we can dream, and that’s good – so, so good’.
