The boss of the Yamaha troops on the MotoGP field, Lin Jarvis, looks back on a 2021 season which ended well, but which was anything but a smooth ride. It would indeed have been easy to switch to the wrong side of the force between an M1 with obvious weaknesses, particularly against the Ducati, and a rider who has been present for five seasons and who has truly broken down, to the point of being accompanied until the end. exit from the box. In this turmoil, Fabio Quartararo stayed the course and brought the brand to safety, with this title of World Drivers' Champion lost from sight since 2015. However, as a manager, the Maverick Viñales episode will remain for Lin Jarvis a concrete case which will be useful for the future…
Lynn Jarvis has enough to end the 2021 financial year with the feeling of accomplishment. The title of World Drivers' Champion went to one of its drivers, in this case fabio quartararo, and in the shop opposite, planted in WSBK, the crown also went to a driver from the brand with Toprak Razgatlioglu. However, there was an internal crisis situation which could have had collateral damage if fabio quartararo and his team had not managed to put themselves above the fray.
An episode that Lynn Jarvis do not minimize at the time of the assessment. So much so that we understand that he learned his lessons, so as not to relive such an adventure in his box again: “ we obviously had problems because Maverick was inconsistent throughout the year and then we reached crisis point, generally in Assen where he asked to leave. You know, he was not happy, il voulait partir et passer à autre chose. Cette histoire a été bien racontée : à ce moment, nous étions d’accord “OK, c’est bon” ».
This reminder made, he shares his thoughts: “ in hindsight... We could have... Anticipated this... It's difficult because something happened and evolved when we didn't expect it ". A frankness which is to the credit of the Englishman who continues: “ I mean, when Maverick renewed with us for 2 years and Valentino was leaving, I would probably say we had the strongest team on the grid to start this year. Maverick was in his fifth year and normally should have progressed to become the leader of the team, because before that, Valentino was always there. Valentino, of course, has so much history and so many ties to Yamaha that it can sometimes cast a shadow over the teammate. So he (Viñales) started really well ».
Lin Jarvis: “certaines choses vous prennent par surprise je n’avais jamais été dans cette situation avant"
« Si vous m’aviez posé la même question en mars ou avril, quand nous étions au Qatar, j’aurais répondu “Je suis totalement convaincu que nous avons pris la bonne décision et qu’il a pris la bonne décision”. Mais qui pouvait imaginer qu’en remportant la première course vous finiriez à la neuvième par avoir une crise avec le pilote qui choisit de quitter l’entreprise ? At the same time we were one and two at Assen, so you could hardly say the bike wasn't competitive or the team wasn't performing well. Finally, we won the world championship! So I think the decision that we made at that time to renew with Maverick was the right decision, and it's very difficult to... You know, if we could all make decisions based on the guaranteed future, we would be all very rich and probably not here, but it's not that simple ».
He finishes : " some things take you by surprise. It was difficult to deal with at the time because it was completely unprecedented, I had never been in this situation before, mid-season, like that. But that said, I think we all ultimately handled it the best way possible, and we're pretty comfortable with the group we put together. ».
Maverick Vinales is now a pilot aprilia-racing, a brand he joined at the beginning of September following this premature separation with Yamaha preceded by a suspension. The No. 12 has so far reached the points twice in five starts. We will particularly remember this eighth place obtained in Misano. The adaptation milestone has passed, Aprilia will likely demand more of its share in 2022.
