Personal Information
Full Name | Maverick Viñales Ruiz |
Date of Birth | January 12, 1995 |
Nationality | Spanish |
Height | 1.71 m |
Role | MotoGP Rider |
Family | Ángel Viñales - Mother |
Maverick Viñales : A Brief Biography
Maverick Vinales is a Spanish professional motorcycle rider currently representing the Yamaha Factory team.
125cc/Moto3 and Moto2 class
Riding the Aprilia RSA 125, Maverick Vinales had a dream debut in the 2011 125cc season. The Spaniard managed to secure four race wins in his rookie year and finished the championship in the third place. For his valiant drives throughout the year, the Spanish rider was presented the Rookie of the Year award.
He bettered his win percentage the following year in Moto3 but still failed to secure the championship. His lack of consistency combined with multiple crashes in the 2012 season meant that he would not better his previous season’s record, and finished the year in the third place.
Vinales improved his consistency in the following season and secured a podium place in all but two races that year. That year saw him take on Alex Rins in a fierce battle throughout the season with Vinales securing the championship in the very last race of the season. He beat Rins by just 12 points.
Vinales moved to the Moto2 class in 2014 and stayed in that division for only a single season. He managed to secure nine podiums and four wins during his short Moto2 stint, and ultimately, finished the season in the third place.
MotoGP class
Maverick Vinales made his MotoGP debut in 2015 with the Suzuki Ecstar MotoGP team. The Spaniard had a lacklustre first year and could not even secure a single podium that season.
Still riding for Suzuki, the Spanish rider showed better pace the following year and secured his first victory at the 2016 British Grand Prix. Three more third-place finishes that year ensured that he would finish the MotoGP riders’ championship in the fourth place.
Maverick Vinales replaced Jorge Lorenzo at the Yamaha Factory team after the latter’s departure from the Japanese manufacturer to join the Ducati team. Vinales had a mesmerising start to the season as he took two victories in the opening two races of the season. However, his results failed to show any consistency and only managed five more podiums before the season ended at Valencia. The Spaniard finished the 2017 riders’ championship in the third place.
In 2018, Vinales is yet to capture the form that he had shown in the 2017 season. The Spanish rider has three podiums to his name so far and currently holds the fifth place in the riders’ championship.