Mixed Results for Movistar Yamaha in Moist Motegi Race

Race

Today Movistar Yamaha MotoGP's Maverick Viñales put in a consistent ride at a very wet Twin Ring Motegi track to secure ninth place.

Viñales had a great start to Yamaha's home race, riding midfield through the spray from a 14th-place starting position to eighth in the opening lap. He had to let Alex Rins and teammate Rossi past on lap 3 as he warmed his tyres, but this setback was only temporary.

The Spaniard overtook Jorge Lorenzo three laps later, while Rossi crashed out of the race, and reclaimed eighth place. He gradually started to up his pace as his confidence grew at the very wet Motegi track, but soon realised Aleix Espargaró, riding directly in front of him, was too far ahead.

In the second half of the race Viñales focused his attention on defending his eighth place from Lorenzo, who arrived at the back of his Yamaha with six laps to go. The number-25 rider put his head down, but was unable to hold off his compatriot. He crossed the line in ninth place, 36.575s from the front.

The team will soon head south to take part in next week's Michelin Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix on Phillip Island, Australia.

Maverick Viñales

Position: 9th - Championship: 3rd - Points: 203

"I expected things to be a little bit worse, because this morning I was trying to be in the top-15. Finally, in the race, I pushed a lot in the beginning. I tried to risk only the necessary, trying to give our best. Today this was the maximum and we will have to think now about Australia. Until all the points are collected it is impossible to know if there is still a chance to win the championship. For sure we we'll face different circumstances in Australia. It will be a different bike and different tyres, we don't know what we're going to have there, but it's a track I like a lot, I like to ride there, so I can't wait to be on the bike again."

Massimo Meregalli

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP - Team Director

"When we arrived here in Japan, we weren't expecting this weekend to be as difficult as it turned out to be. We really worked hard to try to find a solution. We put in a lot of effort, but we weren't able to do it in the end. We never found the rear grip that the riders were looking for in almost all the sessions, as well as in the race itself, but both of the riders tried to make the best of it. We know that we have a lot of work ahead of us, and I expect that we will use the next round to explore different solutions for the future."