Like his teammate, Maverick Vinales was rather optimistic on the starting grid for the Malaysian Grand Prix, even with the unwanted arrival of rain.
Indeed, big progress had been made in these conditions during the free practice session on Friday afternoon during which the Yamaha rider ranked 4th behind Dovizioso, Márquez and Lorenzo.
Unfortunately, however with the same settings, number 25, who started 5th alongside Valentino Rossi, quickly plunged to 16th position before benefiting from falls until halfway, then beginning a climb back to ninth place.
These words are therefore in the same vein as those of Valentino Rossi, a mixture of disappointment and incomprehension, without of course giving up!
Maverick Vinales : “Actually, this morning I was very happy and confident because we found a better set-up and I really got back the feeling I had during pre-season. After the warm up, I said that if it was dry, I could do an incredible race because with a 20 lap tire, I was able to do 2'00, and so I was very happy and impatient. I thought we made a big move in the wet at Phillip Island and actually felt really good during FP2. We were third (4th) in the standings and I felt in a good rhythm all the laps I did. During the race it was a totally different feeling, I was losing the rear in the corners and I couldn't lean, and so it was very difficult to get a good rhythm and confidence. I had already felt it during the reconnaissance lap, I was slipping everywhere, and I said to myself “impossible”. Today was a really bad race, I didn't even check my position at the start, because I thought I was last. Anyway, I have to keep FP2 (here) and the Phillip Island Warm up in mind and not think too much about today's race, because we had some problems today, but we were fast during certain other sessions. I think Valencia is a good circuit. In reality, we found some good settings during the warm-up which gave me a lot of confidence. I'm very happy about that, and also because I know we have a good opportunity in Valencia, since it's a track that I really like and where I've always been fast. We'll see what happens and we'll try to have the best possible race there. »
Massimo Meregalli : “We knew from the start that the weather was going to be a major factor in how today's race was going to play out. We had a wet FP2 session this weekend, and the feeling was completely positive, especially Maverick, but today the situation was different and we need to understand why. The drivers were unable to warm up the rear tire until halfway through the race and this cost them a lot of positions. When the feeling with the tire improved, the times improved considerably, but unfortunately it was too late. We need to understand how the track conditions were different compared to Friday, because the bikes had very similar settings today to those used in FP2. We will put this weekend behind us and, after a week of rest, we will focus on the final in Valencia which will take place in two weeks. Our fight in the Manufacturers' Championship is over and the teams' title will also be very difficult to obtain, but we still want to come back strongly, and finish the season on a positive note. »
#MalaysianGP MotoGP J.3: Ranking
| 1 | 4 | Andrea Dovizioso | Ducati | 44'51.497 |
| 2 | 99 | Jorge Lorenzo | Ducati | 0.743 |
| 3 | 5 | johann zarco | Yamaha | 9.738 |
| 4 | 93 | Marc Márquez | Honda | 17.763 |
| 5 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | Honda | 29.144 |
| 6 | 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | Ducati | 30.38 |
| 7 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | Yamaha | 30.769 |
| 8 | 43 | Jack Miller | Honda | 35.238 |
| 9 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | Yamaha | 38.053 |
| 10 | 44 | Pol Espargaró | KTM | 39.847 |
| 11 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Ducati | 42.559 |
| 12 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | KTM | 44.602 |
| 13 | 45 | Scott REDDING | Ducati | 48.696 |
| 14 | 8 | Hector BARBERA | Ducati | 50.058 |
| 15 | 35 | Cal Crutchlow | Honda | 50.705 |
| 16 | 60 | Michael VAN DER MARK | Yamaha | 56.397 |
| 17 | 29 | Andrea Iannone | Suzuki | 58.391 |
| 18 | 53 | Tito RABAT | Honda | + 1'25.571 |
| Not Classified | ||||
| 22 | Sam LOWES | Aprilia | 11 lapses | |
| 17 | Karel ABRAHAM | Ducati | 12 lapses | |
| 76 | Loris BAZ | Ducati | 15 lapses | |
| 42 | Alex Rins | Suzuki | 0 laps | |
