An annoyed Maverick Viñales (KTM) responds to false media reports

The MotoGP World Championship is on hold until the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, which starts on 7 August. That’s when veteran rider Maverick Viñales is expected to return to action – or perhaps not. The Red Bull KTM Tech 3 rider is still struggling with the shoulder injury he sustained at the 2025 Sachsenring Grand Prix.

For this reason, Spanish media have recently reported that Viñales will be forced to take another break. There were also rumours that Viñales would need further surgery. Instead, top test rider Pol Espargaró was set to don the racing leathers for team principal Günther Steiner’s squad at Silverstone (as reported by SPEEDWEEK.com). Some websites even reported that Viñales was set to move to the Superbike World Championship. All of this is likely to have reached Viñales’ ears by now and annoyed him.

Examination at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Centre

The fact is: as part of his involvement with ‘Go with your Pro’ at the Red Bull Ring, Viñales was also in Thalgau, Salzburg, recently, where he underwent another full medical check-up by specialists at the Red Bull Athlete Performance Centre (APC). On Sunday afternoon, Viñales spoke out about his state of health and all the rumours. The 31-year-old Spaniard used his social media channels to send a clear message: “I’m reading reports that make no sense,” Viñales began. “Last week I was at the APC and together we tried to understand why I hadn’t been able to recover properly.”

The 26-time Grand Prix winner went on to say: “All this information is now being analysed together with my doctors to see if we’ve identified the problem and what steps need to be taken to improve the situation.” This was followed by a clear demand from Viñales to the media: “Stop writing silly articles about me. I won’t be racing in the Superbike World Championship and I’ll finish the year as stipulated in my contract.”

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07.08.2026 - 10:55