Vinales explains dramatic brake 'explosion' in Styria MotoGP
Maverick Vinales says the brake failure which forced him to jump off his Yamaha at 130mph in the Styrian Grand Prix was something he "never had during my MotoGP career".
Yamaha riders have endured brake concerns in both Red Bull Ring weekends, with Petronas rider Fabio Quartararo's Austrian GP hindered by issues he branded "dangerous".
Vinales was passed by Ducati's Andrea Dovizioso in the early stages of the Styrian GP, before dropping to 10th by lap 10 as he began to lose brake pressure.
The problem seemed to resolve itself, before it got worse again, with the Yamaha rider raising his hand to signal he had an issue on lap 13.
Then on lap 17 on the way into Turn 1, his front brake "exploded" and he had to jump off, with the bike slamming into the barrier and bringing out the red flag.
The restarted race was eventually won by Tech 3 KTM rider Miguel Oliveira after a final corner move on Jack Miller and Pol Espargaro.
Explaining his crash, Vinales said: "I was quite fast, I was feeling fantastic on the first laps, I was pushing Dovi, but as we don't have top speed, you can see I could not overtake.
"I overtook one time and I said 'okay, now I can go forward in front', but then he overtake me on the straight very easily.
"I was just waiting to get the rhythm, but then I started to lose the front pressure of the brake, I went out [of the track] one time.
"I make three laps very slow in 1m26s, then I push again at 1m24s, then again without brakes, and then Quartararo, Valentino [Rossi] and [Danilo] Petrucci overtake me.
"Then suddenly the brake was good. So, I could make 1m22s, 1m24s on mediums and I was recovering a lot to Valentino and Fabio, but then suddenly at corner one the brake exploded, so [it was] impossible to do anything."
When asked if he'd had any issues with his brakes before, he added: "No, no, it's something I never had during all my MotoGP career.
"Maybe [the brake pressure would] go down a little bit.
"I played with the lever [to adjust it], but on every lap I was adjusting the lever corner by corner so I couldn't do nothing."
Though Red Bull Ring is notorious for its hard braking zones, Vinales doesn't feel this was the main cause of his failure.
Bike of Maverick Vinales, Yamaha Factory Racing after his crash
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Share Or Save This Story
MotoGP 2025: Full rider line-up revealed
A year on from Marquez’s Germany MotoGP meltdown, has Honda improved?
What’s behind MotoGP’s right-hander chaos in Germany practice?
Maverick Vinales on MotoGP future and injury recovery: “I don’t have to convince anyone”
Maverick Vinales 'feeling good’ ahead of MotoGP return as questions loom over his future
Why Dani Pedrosa won't replace Maverick Vinales at Le Mans, despite his form
Joan Mir to test Honda’s 2027 MotoGP bike in Brno despite impending Ducati move
Pirelli doesn't intend to make a "Marquez" tyre for MotoGP: "It is not our style"
MotoGP’s new era: one bike in practice and less track time from 2027
Is there a 'fair' way to undo the Monaco penalties madness?
Chris Buescher signs multi-year contract extension with RFK Racing
McLaren and Red Bull formally appeal against Pierre Gasly's Monaco reinstatement
George Russell 'put in a tough spot' by Mercedes, claims Juan Pablo Montoya
Why MotoGP's latest Hungarian experiment may not last
What we learned from MotoGP’s unusual Hungarian GP
How Trackhouse is preparing for the post-Davide Brivio era
Why MotoGP's chiefs need to start listening to the riders on sprint issue
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments