Vinales: Yamaha can be “one complete MotoGP team” post-Rossi
Maverick Vinales believes Yamaha can be “one complete team” in 2021 now seven-time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi has left for Petronas SRT.
Yamaha signed Fabio Quartararo to take Rossi’s place for 2021 at the start of last year, with the veteran Italian remaining a factory-backed rider with a switch to SRT.
Vinales feels Yamaha has lacked unity within its ranks for the last three years, and believes now there is no longer the division within the garage of having “Valentino’s team” and “my team” the Japanese marque can be more “complete” as a unit in 2021.
“I think for us it’s very important the unity in the team, because for the last three years everyone was going it alone,” Vinales said during Yamaha’s 2021 launch event.
“We were not all as one, and I think with Esteban [Garcia, crew chief], also Lin [Jarvis, managing director] and Maio [Meregalli, team manager] what we are trying to do is take the 20 or 24 guys that are working inside the team to make it one team.
“And for me I think this is more important to keep the good mood, the good feeling.
“After the previous years, it’s been difficult because it was Valentino’s team, my team.
“Now I think we have the opportunity to be one complete team and to go forward in the same direction with both riders and I think to accomplish what we are able to do, because you can see in one race we are super good and the next race we are bad.
“For me it’s difficult to believe the bike can change so much from one track to the next.
“So, first we have to up step all these problems we have, and for sure the results will come alone because we have the speed, we have good qualifying, we have good races, good rhythm.
“So, what I think we need is more details. We need to go deep in the details, and I think Maio and Lin are really involved in all these details.”
Quartararo agrees with Vinales’ comments, noting they showed similar levels of performance across the campaign, which should aid in developing the M1.
“In Jerez, both [of us] made 1-2, then in the end of the championship we were always together; if I was seventh, he was eighth, or reversed,” Quartararo said when Motorsport.com asked him about Vinales’ comments.
“So always super close. At the end of the year, we never had a factory bike in P1 or P2, and then all the rest P11.
“We were all down or all up, so I think we more or less had the same complaints and I think we can do a good job together.
“It’s always difficult to say the same comment because we have different riding styles.
“But for sure we have the same problems and I think we need to push in the same way, and I think this is great.
“Of course, Maverick is my main rival, but if we can fight for one and two and not eighth and ninth, it’s much better to work together.
“So, I think it will be a good rivalry and to improve the bike.“
Related video
Yamaha commits to MotoGP through to 2026
Quartararo hopes for Lorenzo/Rossi-style rivalry with Vinales
Why Ducati holds all the power in its MotoGP rider dilemma
OPINION: The French Grand Prix looks to have made Ducati’s decision on its factory team line-up simpler, as Enea Bastianini stormed to his third win of the campaign and Jorge Martin crashed out for a fifth time in 2022. But, as Ducati suggests to Motorsport.com, it remains in the strongest position in a wild rider market
The seismic aftershock of Suzuki's decision to leave MotoGP
Suzuki's sudden decision to leave the MotoGP World Championship at the end of the season has acted as a stirring element in a market that had already erupted. We analyse what this means for the grid going into 2023
How the real Ducati began to emerge in MotoGP's Spanish GP
Ducati’s 2022 MotoGP bike has had a tough start to life and the expected early-season title charge from Francesco Bagnaia did not materialise. But the Spanish Grand Prix signalled a turning point for both the GP22 and Bagnaia, as the 2021 runner-up belatedly got his season underway after a straight fight with Fabio Quartararo
How praise for Honda's MotoGP bike has given way to doubt
In a little over two months, Honda has gone from setting the pace in MotoGP testing with its new RC213V prototype to being at a crossroads - caused by the discrepancy in its riders' feedback. After a Portuguese GP that underwhelmed, serious questions are now being asked of Honda in 2022
Why Quartararo's win was vital not only for his title hopes
Fabio Quartararo got his MotoGP title defence off the ground in the Portuguese Grand Prix as a dominant first win of 2022 rocketed him to the top of the standings. While a significant result in terms of his title hopes, it has come at an even more important time in terms of his 2023 contract negotiations
The MotoGP rookie fighting two fronts in his debut year
Darryn Binder has found himself in the unenviable position as MotoGP's most under-pressure rookie in 2022 having made the step directly from Moto3 with a reputation as an over-aggressive rider. This hasn't been an easy thing to shake at the start of the season, but he believes tangible progress is being made
How ‘Beast’ mode is putting Ducati in 2022 MotoGP title contention
Enea Bastianini’s second win of the 2022 campaign at COTA puts him back in the lead of the standings and once again showed the best Ducati package is still the 2021 bike. Those closest to Bastianini tell Motorsport.com why he’s so good on the GP21 relative to his factory counterparts.
How Espargaro helped Aprilia shed MotoGP's underdog tag
Aleix Espargaro became MotoGP's newest winner in a thrilling Argentina Grand Prix in which he also proved the merits of the Aprilia project. After six years of hard graft, both parties have reaped the rewards they have long thought they deserved. But it was several key moments in that journey that led both to that momentous Sunday at Termas de Rio Hondo.