MotoGP: Maverick Viñales Jumps Ship to Yamaha

There has been a great deal of smoke around this fire, but Maverick Viñales has finally inked a deal with the Movistar Yamaha MotoGP team.

Though there has been chatter on the subject since Friday, the news was confirmed to Asphalt & Rubber today. Together with the news of Dani Pedrosa staying at Repsol Honda, all of these reports should end one of the largest focal points of speculation in the GP paddock.

The move will see Viñales racing alongside his childhood hero, Valentino Rossi, for the next two seasons; and it also means things are back to square-one for the Ecstar Suzuki MotoGP team, as it looks for a new rider to lead the project on the track.

Now easily the worst kept secret in the MotoGP paddock, the officially official word from Yamaha and Suzuki will likely come right before this week’s pre-event press conference for the Italian GP, as Viñales is slated to appear on that panel in Mugello.

The last remaining silly season puzzle is who will replace Viñales at Suzuki, with a bevy of riders being linked to right now in the media.