Vinales Follows Instinct to KTM: Shock Results at Austin Trigger Aprilia Exit

Maverick Vinales: Continuing with Aprilia alongside Martin? “I had already decided” | “Surprised after Austin”

Maverick Vinales discloses that his intuition and a decline in performance following the Austin race significantly influenced his choice to depart from Aprilia and join Tech3 KTM in 2025.

In a surprising move in the 2025 MotoGP rider market, Maverick Vinales decided to leave his successful factory Aprilia team to sign with Tech3 KTM.

The Spanish rider, who made history this year by becoming the first MotoGP competitor to secure wins on three different motorcycle brands with his Aprilia triumph at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), was originally expected to remain teammates with the newly signed Jorge Martin.

Opting for a career with the orange team, the 29-year-old racer will strive to increase his wins, which already include triumphs with Suzuki, Yamaha, and Aprilia.

"Essentially, one of the primary reasons is that I trust my gut feeling," Vinales remarked regarding his 2025 team switch during a Thursday interview at Assen.

"I have an idea of what the future holds, the bike I'll be riding, and I believed that choosing KTM was the right decision."

"Realizing the potential I have, as demonstrated in Austin, and not being able to replicate that in more races speaks volumes. That heavily influenced my decision."

"I focused entirely on performance and riding, and choosing KTM was, in my opinion, the smartest decision I could make both for the project and in terms of competition."

Vinales is now holding the sixth position in the world championship standings, just behind Pedro Acosta, who rides for Tech3 and is the leading KTM rider. The top four spots are all occupied by Ducati riders.

Vinales: 'I was somewhat taken aback after Austin'

Vinales disclosed that he had been contemplating leaving Aprilia 'since Jerez', following his flawless double victory in Austin.

The Spanish racer has secured 9th, 5th, 12th, and 8th place finishes in the Grand Prix events that took place after the Circuit of the

In my own words, the text would be:

"I've been contemplating my decision since the Jerez race. I felt uncertain about continuing, especially after the Austin event, which left me somewhat stunned. I realized that performing well in only one out of twenty races is not something I enjoy."

"I believe I am capable and would love the opportunity to do it more often."

"I spent a lot of time contemplating it, and it's clear that the rider market evolves rapidly. I aimed to approach it with more calmness, wait until the summer, and then make a well-considered decision."

"But noticing that Aprilia was quick to sign Jorge, and seeing the potential of a strong team with Jorge and Maverick, I had already decided before the Mugello event."

"I'm definitely pleased for the team that they'll have both Martin and Marco Bezzecchi. Wishing them good luck."

Vinales refrained from discussing the reasons he believes KTM presents a more promising future compared to Aprilia, his team since parting ways with Yamaha in mid-2021.

"It's difficult to determine who is performing better or worse, and it's also inappropriate for me to make any such judgments," he stated.

"I simply aim to determine what will be most beneficial for me. And I can see that quite plainly."

"It's challenging to add anything further because my choice is based on predicting which bike will dominate the next championship."

"That's how I feel, and that's the reason behind it."

Vinales will be partnering with another factory rider moving to a satellite team, Enea Bastianini, who has been replaced by Marc Marquez in the Ducati lineup.

The upcoming Tech3 riders have been promised the same standing as the factory KTM team, which includes Brad Binder and Pedro Acosta.

In an interview with Pit Beirer, a statement caught my eye: 'The leader of the KTM team will be whoever is leading on the track.' This means that the performance on the track will determine the team leader. Vinales commented, "He's right, there's nothing more to say!"

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