VINALES KNOCKING ON DOOR OF MOTOGP WIN

It has taken almost a full season. But Silverstone was proof Maverick Viñales can be a MotoGP race winner once more. “It’s only a matter of time,” he said of his prospects of going one better than his second place scored on Sunday.

To get the Catalan to this level, Aprilia has embarked on a strategy of continual set-up tweaks to get its man comfortable. Also, it has shown patience and worked at establishing trust in his side of the garage. “Since the Sachsenring race we have seen that Maverick has made a step in his confidence on the bike,” said Paolo Bonora, Aprilia’s Race Manager. “From there his mood was better. After many tests, we gave him a specific chassis setting, putting the weight distribution in a specific place. Following his comments and checking the data, we also found an electronics setting that gave him the correct confidence to enter the corner in a smoother way.”

“When we met him in Misano, we immediately found a rider with an open mind. That showed to us he needed trust close to him. To have each engineer and mechanic close to him, and they needed to give him the trust. When he feels the trust coming from the guys close to him, he gives his best. He’s a very sensitive rider. But we need to keep him in a comfortable situation without pushing him so hard.”

WORDS // NEIL MORRISON