MotoGP | Meregalli (Yamaha): “Vinales often doesn't listen, but we respect him”

MotoGP Movistar Yamaha – On the occasion of the Dutch Grand Prix Yamaha 'celebrated' the unenviable record of a year without victories. On the occasion of the Barcelona tests, some more updates were expected on the M1 of Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales which, at least some of them arrived, but they did not produce the desired results.

The bike from the Iwata manufacturer has improved compared to last year, but the other manufacturers have managed to do much better. The next evolutionary step is expected for the Brno tests, in about 2 weeks, but in case things don't go as planned, a 'plan B' is planned, that is, a private test in Misano in mid-August, as revealed by Massimo Meregalli , Yamaha team manager, at the MotoGP.com website.

“Valentino's three podiums were very positive. In Barcelona, ​​we had a good test. For the Brno test, we expect improvements from Yamaha. There will also be a private test in Misano in mid-August. If we don't receive new components for Brno, then it will be for the Misano test"

“We have experienced many difficulties since the 2017 Assen GP.” Meregalli says, who then adds: “These problems were evident in several areas. This made it difficult to solve them all. There were different difficulties in each race. It was difficult for us. The bike works better this year, but compared to our rivals, we are still a little behind.”

One of the big problems since the beginning of the season, at least on Maverick Vinales' garage side, is the start of the race. In the first laps the Spaniard is unable to keep up with his rivals, finding the rhythm only when it is too late. The cause of this problem, as the team manager explains, does not appear to be just a technical problem, but an 'error' by the pilot:

“From Mugello we understood that Maverick isn't pushing enough on the warm-up lap. The tire temperature therefore drops. This mainly concerns the front tyre. Therefore, he failed to fully use the tire in the first five laps. The rubber did not work properly. That's why we asked him to push harder. And we've also changed the way the tires are brought up to temperature. Already in Barcelona he felt an improvement, but the corners and braking still cause him problems. In the test we mainly worked with a full tank of fuel. On the last lap he was fast and consistent from start to finish.”

Vinales arrived at Yamaha with the sole objective of winning the world championship, but at the moment there is nothing further away and the frustration after each race is more and more: “It's never easy to manage a situation like this. Vinales is young, but he has an extreme desire to win. He sometimes doesn't listen or doesn't wait long enough to get to the bottom of the problem. We know this and respect him as a driver. We try to show him how he should deal with such situations.”