Aprilia has confirmed that Maverick Viñales will be joining the Italian factory for the 2022 MotoGP season, with an option to continue for 2023.
The Spaniard will join Aleix Espargaro in the Aprilia Racing factory team once Viñales’ contract with Yamaha expires at the end of the current year.
The news had been widely expected, after Viñales made a shock announcement just after the Assen round that he would be leaving Yamaha at the end of 2021, halfway through his two-year contract.
Rumors linking Viñales to Aprilia emerged during the Assen round, as rumors of the split with Yamaha leaked that weekend.
The deal had been a long time in the making, however. The announcement had been expected in the week ahead of the first race at the Red Bull Ring over a week ago.
The news that Yamaha had suspended Viñales for the second Austria round after he intentionally over-revved his Yamaha M1 during the Styria race cast further doubt on the deal. But that has not proved to be an obstacle.
Aprilia is hoping that Maverick Viñales is the last piece of the puzzle for the Noale factory. Having a proven top rider alongside Aleix Espargaro is what they wanted to help the Aprilia RS-GP make the next step to becoming a podium-worthy motorcycle.
The Italian team has had a difficult run with second riders, of their own making, for the most part.
Sam Lowes and Scott Redding were given a single year to prove themselves, and never appeared to enjoy the support of the management that Espargaro seemed to have.
Andrea Iannone got off to a rocky start with Aprilia, and never made the impact that the factory hoped, only to be suspended for a doping infractoin at the end of his first year.
Whether Maverick Viñales will fare any better is the big unknown. The Spaniard is unquestionably talented, but has not proved easy to work with, going through three crew chiefs in his five season with Yamaha.
In the right environment, Viñales can thrive. Aprilia will have to work to create that environment.
Source: Aprilia; Photo: Yamaha Racing
Comments