Vinales ‘fine’ to return after missing Brno test
Maverick Vinales has reported he’s fully fit to take on the Austria GP having sat out Monday’s Brno test following his heavy opening lap collision last weeknd.
The Movistar Yamaha rider was collected in the huge crash involving Stefan Bradl and Bradley Smith on the first lap of the Czech Republic race forcing him into his first retirement of 2018.
Maverick Vinales has reported he’s fully fit to take on the Austria GP having sat out Monday’s Brno test following his heavy opening lap collision last weeknd.
The Movistar Yamaha rider was collected in the huge crash involving Stefan Bradl and Bradley Smith on the first lap of the Czech Republic race forcing him into his first retirement of 2018.
Having felt battered and bruised from the clash, Vinales missed the post-race test to prioritise a full recovery for the back-to-back round in Austria. The Spaniard is eager to forget the disaster Brno race but is wary of losing ground on his MotoGP rivals having missed the test.
“I'm fine after the crash in Brno. It was a weekend to forget, so I can’t wait to arrive in Austria,” Vinales said. “Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible for me to test in Brno, because I was a little sore from the crash, and we decided I should rest in order to be 100% ready for the next round.
“I had planned to try some things in Brno on Monday, like working on the acceleration, that will be very important at the Red Bull Ring where the top speed is crucial considering the track lay-out.”
After consecutive podiums at the two races before the summer break, Vinales accepts returning to the rostrum in Spielberg is essential to keep alive his MotoGP title ambitions after slipping down to fourth in the riders’ championship and 72 points behind leader Marc Marquez.
But Vinales is also wary of the challenge Yamaha faces at the Red Bull Ring having struggled for front-running pace over the past two years since the return of the Austrian event to the MotoGP calendar.
“As I’ve been saying during the last GPs, we know that we have to continue scoring points to be at least in the top three in the championship standings and to have the option to win this year's world title,” he said.
“Last year in Austria the race was not good for us, we finished sixth and seventh, so I sincerely hope that this year we can bring home a better result and we will work hard for that.”
