Maverick Vinales experienced multiple disasters in Austin before the start of the race – in the end, the Tech3-KTM rider had to start from the pit lane.
Last year’s winner Maverick Vinales experienced a totally chaotic race day at the Circuit of The Americas in the USA. When Marc Marquez sprinted into the pit lane before the start of the warm-up lap, a number of riders followed suit. Among them was Vinales.
But in the pits, his second bike was not ready. So the Spaniard ran back to the starting line-up. His mechanics were just about to push his KTM with mounted rain tires into the pit lane. Vinales gestured that he wanted this bike back.
Finally, race control canceled the entire starting procedure. Everything started from zero. All riders changed to slicks. Vinales tackled the warm-up lap without any problems and positioned himself in tenth place on the grid.
Then he gestured and waved because the engine suddenly stopped. Vinales had to push his KTM off the grid and into the pit lane with the help of an official. As a result, he also had to start the race from the pit lane.
“When we came back to the grid, the bike stalled twice, so I had to start from the pit lane – that was unfortunate,” Vinales sighs. This ruined any chance of a top-10 finish.
Tech3 team manager Nicolas Goyon says: ”Maverick’s bike stalled on the grid for reasons we don’t yet understand. He then had to start from the pit lane. It was a shame because after just one lap he was ten seconds behind the penultimate rider.”
Vinales did not give up and finished the race. He crossed the finish line in 14th place and scored two championship points. His average pace was in the mid-2’03s. Teammate Enea Bastianini, who finished seventh, posted comparable times.
“Honestly,“ said Vinales, ‘I felt very good, I had a good rhythm and we have clearly made progress this weekend. I really want to continue working with the team in this direction.’
”We had the potential for the top five. We have to continue to believe that we can achieve this goal. Qatar in two weeks could be a good track for that – so we’ll keep going.”
Vinales has been feeling an upward trend since the bike’s balance was changed in Argentina on Sunday. He is able to build more confidence in the braking phase. Despite the changeable weather, he saw this trend confirmed in Austin as well.
“He had a really good weekend,” says Goyon. ‘So, of course, we are disappointed because more would have been possible for us. Nevertheless, we are leaving Austin with a positive feeling because both Maverick and Enea have made great strides this weekend.’
