Maverick Vinales will welcome Fabio Quartararo next season when the two line up together on the MotoGP for Monster Energy Yamaha.
Following a delay due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 MotoGP season got underway last weekend and it was Petronas Yamaha SRT’s Quartararo who got off to a fast start by winning the Spanish Grand Prix for his first race victory.
After debuting last year, the 21-year-old has had a fast rise and is signed to the Yamaha Factory team on a two-year deal starting next season — where he will replace legendary rider Valentino Rossi.
Although he finished second to Quartararo at the Spanish GP, Vinales said he is looking forward to teaming up with the young rider.
“I just want to say congratulation [to Quartararo] because it’s not easy to win a MotoGP race,” said Vinales, who overcame a few nervous moments in Jerez. “For me, it’s fantastic to have Fabio on the team so we can improve the bike and we can be better in every race.”
Quartararo struggled to contain his emotions after securing the win to become the first Frenchman to win a major MotoGP race since 1996. He also expressed sympathy for defending champion Marc Marquez of Honda, who crashed out with four laps remaining.
Marquez fell down the grid after going off track in Turn 4 on the fifth lap but managed to stay on his bike. The Spaniard then produced a stunning comeback to move to third place and looked set to overtake Vinales before he crashed at the same corner.
Honda confirmed on Sunday that Marquez broke his right arm and will undergo surgery on Tuesday. It is unclear how long his recovery will take.
“The grip was really bad,” Quartararo said. “Maverick had a big moment in Turn 8 in the first lap, he had another moment in Turn 6, then Marc had the moment in Turn 4.
“If you check the pace [between qualifying and race day], it’s almost one second slower so, with the heat and the built-up rubber from [the earlier] Moto2 and Moto3 [races], the track was so difficult to ride. But we finally managed to get our first victory and that’s the most important.”