Less pain, more speed: Viñales (Tech3) stunned everyone by making it through to Q2

Immediately after the end of the MotoGP qualifying session, team principal Nicolas Goyon could hardly believe it: for the first time since 2026, both Tech3 riders – Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales – had secured direct entry into the second qualifying session. Their qualification was also anything but a matter of luck or a nail-biting affair. Both riders impressed with strong sessions – and pace.

Whilst Bastianini had already shown his mettle on several occasions this season, Maverick’s performance was arguably the biggest surprise of the day. This was partly because there had been no indication of such a surge in performance during FP1 on Friday morning. Bastianini had already made a positive impression by finishing fourth, just behind Acosta, but ‘Top Gun’ Viñales was initially still 1.5 seconds off the pace – in 16th place.

Vinales managed more than just one fast lap

Hours later, when the coveted ten direct qualifying spots were at stake, a completely transformed Maverick Viñales emerged. For the first time since the 2025 Sachsenring GP, Viñales was back in contention, becoming one of the first riders to clock a time in the 1:57s. In the final minutes, Viñales confirmed with another push that it wasn’t just down to luck. The number 12 rider clocked a time of 1:57.547, finishing eighth, 0.002 seconds behind Bastianini, and just over a tenth of a second slower than frontrunner Pedro Acosta, who also shone in fourth place. It was KTM’s best qualifying session since the current quartet of riders came together. At the 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix, three RC16s also featured in the top eight, albeit with Vinales’s replacement, Pol Espargaro.

Maverick Viñales, who a week ago at Phillip Island was unable even to finish the sprint due to pain, was quick to explain: “It’s, as I’ve always said, purely a question of pain. It’s the sole limiting factor. With the pain in my shoulder, it’s not possible to muster all the strength needed to handle the motorbike properly. You can improvise, but the bike always demands 100 per cent from you.”

Vinales continued: “The fact that I can now ride with so much less pain is down to the circuit – and the treatment I’ve received since Australia. On the left-hand circuit at Phillip Island it was extreme; I could barely muster any strength at all – in Sepang it’s completely different. On top of that came the treatment. I’ve also worked a lot with Dr Charte to tackle the inflammation in my shoulder with injections. And it’s become clear: the less pain, the better the pace. I knew that was the case. I wouldn’t be here if I knew the pace wasn’t there anymore.”

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Lack of routine prevented an even better result

The Tech3 rider went on to say more about his fast laps at Sepang: “I was a bit surprised that I was able to ride like that. Because I hadn’t been that fast for so long, I was lacking a bit of routine and precision. To be honest, the lap times came quite easily to me. With greater precision, I could have been a few tenths faster.”

Looking ahead to the two races in Malaysia, the Catalan said: “I’ll have to see how I manage Saturday, as my clear focus is on the GP race. If I’m struggling with pain in the sprint, I’ll save my energy for Sunday.” And looking even further ahead: “My aim is to go into the final races at Portimão and Valencia pain-free!”