Why the Vinales/Yamaha MotoGP divorce satisfies both parties
On Monday, Yamaha announced it will part ways with Maverick Vinales at the end of the 2021 season - a move requested by the rider. As the already strained relationship between both parties in MotoGP hit rock bottom in recent weeks, this divorce - as Oriol Puigdemont writes - is good for both Yamaha and Vinales for a number of reasons
The tension between Maverick Vinales and Yamaha has been growing, to the point that both the rider and the brand concluded that the best way to resolve the conflict was to end their relationship a year before his contract was due to expire in 2022.
Although the outcome was precipitated this past weekend at Assen, the tension between the two sides had been dragging on for some time. Indeed, the previous Sunday, after finishing last in the German Grand Prix, Vinales' frontal attack on Yamaha had caused the Japanese manufacturer's officials to doubt whether their rider would even ride in the Dutch TT. "After Sachsenring, the truth is that I had little desire to come here," Vinales said at Assen.
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