In 2024, MotoGP will experience the expected crazy ‘Silly Season’, which has already had a number of surprises and unexpected twists in store in recent weeks and months. Maverick Vinales recently caused one of these with his move from Aprilia to the KTM camp, where he will start for the customer team Tech3 from 2025. On media Thursday in Assen, the 29-year-old spoke publicly for the first time about his departure from Aprilia and revealed exciting background information.
“The main reason for my change is to follow my instinct,” Vinales began in the official MotoGP press conference and added: “I just see that it [die KTM RC16, Anm.] in the future, it might be the bike you want to ride. That’s why I think this change is the right way to go.” So does the one-time Grand Prix winner with Aprilia simply have more confidence in the work of KTM? “I’ve only been here four years, I can’t judge who works better or worse here,” Vinales says dismissively. “I just tried to understand what was best for my future. I thought about which bike would be the next big thing in the World Championship and then decided accordingly.”
Maverick Vinales explains KTM switch: Always wants to be as strong as in Austin
At first glance, this is a surprising assessment, as Aprilia is the only manufacturer other than Ducati to have won a Grand Prix in the past 18 months. KTM, on the other hand, has been waiting for a GP victory in MotoGP for almost two years, and the Austrian manufacturer was last successful in a dry race in 2020. Aprilia, on the other hand, won two main races and a sprint with Aleix Espargaro last year, before Vinales was able to add his name to the motorcycle manufacturer from Noale’s list of winners for the first time in Portimao and Austin at the beginning of this year.
But that weekend in mid-April in Austin, when Vinales won the sprint and main race in impressive fashion, played an essential part in his decision to go for KTM. “Seeing the potential I had in Austin and not being able to repeat it afterwards played a major role,” explains the Aprilia rider, who has only been able to finish in the top three in the Le Mans sprint since then. In fact, even with a “strong performance” in Mugello, he was unable to get past eighth place.
“I have been thinking about my future since Jerez,” Vinales now reveals, which in retrospect also explains his cautious statements in recent months about a contract extension with Aprilia. “After Austin, I was shocked at what I was capable of – but only in one out of 20 races. I didn’t like that, I want to do it much more often. That’s why I thought a lot.” Incidentally, the appointment of Jorge Martin as Aleix Espargaro’s successor is said to have played no role in this. “We could have formed a really good team, but I had already made my final decision before Mugello,” Vinales says. “I’m happy for them that they now have Jorge and Marco [Bezzecchi, Anm.] have.”
Enea Bastianini knows: I can win with KTM!
The signing of Vinales by KTM was particularly curious, because at the same time his new teammate at Tech3 was presented: Enea Bastianini. A rider who would have been Aprilia’s ‘preferred candidate no. 1’ to succeed the number 12 rider. But the months of flirting by Aprilia Racing CEO Massimo Rivola ultimately fell on deaf ears at ‘La Bestia’. “I decided quite early because I didn’t want to think about it too much. You have to do it with a certain amount of conviction and KTM was the best way for me,” he explains.
Bastianini had previously hoped to remain in the Ducati factory team until the end and sent a final sign of life with second place in the Italian Grand Prix. But this came too late, the decision against him had already been made. “It wasn’t easy after the Mugello race,” he recalls. “Ducati had made its decision and the market was moving really quickly. So it wasn’t an easy decision. I had good offers. But I saw the possibility of winning in the KTM project. That motivates me and makes me positive for the future.”
If you want to know why Jorge Martin chose Aprilia over KTM, you can read all the important information here: