After his magnificent victory at Silverstone, Vinales confirmed the competitiveness of his GSX-RR at Misano by qualifying in third position alongside the Yamahas of Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi, ahead of Marc Marquez. He therefore had every hope on the World Misano Circuit Marco Simoncelli.
His start to the race was excellent and he remained in third position, before being overtaken on the fourth lap by Marc Marquez et Andrea Dovizioso. He lost a place again in the next round against the future winner Dani Pedrosa. Then sixth, he then came back and passed Dovizioso. But by leaving the limits of the track, he received a penalty from the Race Direction and had to let the Desmosedici overtake him. He passed Dovi for the second time and finally took fifth place.
Maverick explained his race like this: “I'm really happy with this race, and although I didn't make the podium, fifth place is a very good result considering our starting points: it's one of the most difficult tracks for our machine and here it was really hot – a condition we have always struggled with recently. Finishing in fifth place, after winning a tough battle, is a positive result.
“During the race I felt really comfortable with the front, but the rear had no grip at all, so I had to push really hard and adapt my riding style. I managed to stay with the leading group at the start, but then I lost ground. About halfway through I felt like I could push harder and my times got faster again. I had to move back a position for going over the track limit, but I got it back immediately. I have to say thank you to my team, they did an incredible job and it's really a relief to know that now we are also competitive in hot conditions. »
Ken Kawauchi, the Technical Director, expressed Suzuki's point of view as follows: “Today's race cannot be considered negative, but compared to the last one we cannot be satisfied. It's a shame because during the weekend in all the race simulations we had a very good pace with both drivers, but ultimately our best result in the race is Maverick's fifth place. »
