Vinales can handle pressure of title fight, says Schwantz

Vinales, the 2013 Moto3 champion, graduated to MotoGP in 2015 with Suzuki, took his first win and fourth in the championship last year, and has now started his Yamaha career with domination of pre-season testing and victory at Round 1 in Qatar.

Said Schwantz: “I think Maverick has a pretty smart head on his shoulders and I’m sure the team is going to be telling him every weekend, time and time again, ‘This racing is about the championship and if we’re a little bit ‘off’ this weekend, just get what you can get. Don’t go out and sling your bike down the road trying to make a tenth-place bike run up front.’

“As long as someone really takes Vinales under their wing, as long as he has a mentor, I think he’ll do well.”

Schwantz admitted that the extreme focus on the title, even if you the strongest technical package, remains a challenge over and above the normal desire to succeed, although Vinales himself has stated his belief in himself.

The 25-time GP winner said: “It is a much tougher battle when you’re on a really competitive bike and, weekend in, weekend out, your side of the garage and the other side of the garage have two of the fastest bikes on track.

“You’ve got to try and keep yourself consistently there and you have to have that championship perspective. If you don’t have it, you’ve got to learn it.

“But like I say, Maverick is pretty solid in his mind, so I hope he does what we all think he can do.”

Marquez v Vinales rivalry

Schwantz added that he hopes for the sake of MotoGP that Vinales and three-time and reigning champion Marc Marquez can also develop a rivalry.

“Maverick being 22 and Marc being 24 and both being Spanish, you could definitely see that developing – maybe into a Schwantz v [Wayne] Rainey rivalry!

“It could go on for six or eight seasons and if they can put up those kind of battles with some other strong riders in there too, that’s exactly what the sport needs.”