Maverick Viñales facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Maverick Viñales |
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Viñales in 2019
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| Nationality | Spanish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 12 January 1995 Figueres, Spain |
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| Current team | Red Bull KTM Tech3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bike number | 12 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Maverick Viñales Ruiz (born 12 January 1995) is a Spanish motorcycle racer. He competes in the top class of motorcycle racing, MotoGP, for the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team. Maverick is a world champion, having won the 2013 Moto3 World Championship. He has raced for several major teams, including Suzuki, Yamaha, and Aprilia, before joining KTM in 2025.
Contents
Maverick's Racing Journey
Starting Young: Early Career
Maverick Viñales was born in Figueres, Spain. He started racing very early, at just three years old, on small minimoto bikes. He then moved to motocross before switching to circuit racing in 2002. He quickly showed his talent, winning the Catalan 125cc Championship twice in 2007 and 2008.
In 2009, he joined the CEV Buckler 125GP series. He finished second in the championship, earning the "Rookie of the Year" award. He won his first race at Jerez. In 2010, he won the championship title by a very small margin of two points.
Racing in the 125cc World Championship (2011)
In 2011, Maverick moved up to the 125cc World Championship. He joined the SuperMartxé VIP team, which was linked with Paris Hilton. He quickly impressed everyone. In his first race in Qatar, he finished ninth.
At Le Mans, he started from the front row and won his first Grand Prix race. He was only 16 years old, making him one of the youngest riders ever to win a Grand Prix. He won three more races that season. Maverick finished his first year in third place overall and was named "Rookie of the Year."
Moto3 World Championship: A Champion's Rise (2012–2013)
Challenges in 2012
Maverick was a favorite to win the new Moto3 championship in 2012. He won five races early in the season. However, he also had several crashes, which made it hard to keep up with other riders. At one point, he even left his team and flew home, missing a race. He later apologized and returned, finishing third in the championship.
Becoming a World Champion in 2013
For the 2013 season, Maverick joined Team Calvo. He won his first two races with the new team. He had many close battles, often leading races until the very last laps. In the final race of the season, three riders were very close in points for the championship. Maverick fought hard until the last corner and won the race, becoming the Moto3 World Champion!
Moving to Moto2 (2014)
In 2014, Maverick moved to the Moto2 class with Pons Racing. He quickly adapted and won his first Moto2 race at the Circuit of the Americas. He finished the season in third place overall, with four wins and nine podium finishes. He also earned the "Rookie of the Year" award for Moto2.
MotoGP World Championship: The Top Tier
Starting with Suzuki (2015–2016)
Maverick made a big jump to the MotoGP class in 2015, joining the factory Suzuki team. He was the first rider to move to MotoGP after just one season in Moto2.
- 2015 Season: It was Suzuki's first year back in MotoGP, so they were still developing their bike. Maverick showed his consistent riding, finishing 16 out of 18 races. He often placed in the top 10 and ended the season in 12th place, winning his third "Rookie of the Year" award.
- 2016 Season: The Suzuki bike improved a lot in 2016. Maverick achieved his first MotoGP podium finish in France, coming in third. Later, he won his first-ever MotoGP race at the British Grand Prix. This was also Suzuki's first win since 2007. He finished the season in fourth place.
Racing for Yamaha (2017–2021)
After his success with Suzuki, Maverick joined the factory Yamaha team for the 2017 season.
- 2017 Season: He started strong, winning his very first race with Yamaha in Qatar. He also won in Argentina and Le Mans. Despite a strong start, he didn't win any more races that season. He finished third in the championship.
- 2018 Season: This year was tough for Maverick and the Yamaha team. Yamaha had a long period without wins. However, Maverick broke that streak by winning at Phillip Island. He finished the season in fourth place.
- 2019 Season: Maverick changed his race number from 25 to 12, which was his birthday. He won two races this season, the Dutch TT and the Malaysian Grand Prix. He finished third in the championship standings.
- 2020 Season: The 2020 season was shorter due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Maverick had a scary moment in Austria when his brakes failed, forcing him to jump off his bike at high speed. He won one race in Emilia Romagna but struggled with consistency, finishing sixth overall.
- 2021 Season: Maverick started 2021 with a dominant win in Qatar. However, his results became disappointing after that. He qualified on pole position at the Dutch TT and finished second. Soon after, he announced he would leave Yamaha early. Yamaha later suspended him, saying there were "unexplained irregular operations" with his motorcycle during a race.
Joining Aprilia (2021–2024)
In August 2021, Maverick announced he would join the factory Aprilia racing team. He made his debut with Aprilia at the Aragon Grand Prix in September 2021.
- 2022 Season: Maverick earned his first podium with Aprilia at the Dutch TT. He then finished second at the British Grand Prix and third at the San Marino Grand Prix. He signed a contract to stay with Aprilia for 2023 and 2024.
- 2023 Season: He started the season with a podium at the Portuguese Grand Prix. He also finished second in Barcelona, which was a historic 1-2 finish for Aprilia with his teammate. He ended the season in seventh place.
- 2024 Season: At the 2024 Motorcycle Grand Prix of the Americas, Maverick won both the sprint race and the main race. This made him the first MotoGP rider to win races with three different manufacturers: Suzuki, Yamaha, and Aprilia.
Moving to Red Bull KTM Tech3 (2025–)
On June 13, 2024, it was announced that Maverick signed with Red Bull KTM Tech3 as a factory rider for 2025.
In the Qatar Grand Prix, he briefly led the race, becoming the first rider to lead a race with four different manufacturers. He finished second but was later dropped to 14th due to a tire pressure penalty.
Maverick suffered an injury during qualifying at the German MotoGP. He dislocated his left shoulder and also had a fracture and a torn ligament. He had surgery and is expected to miss the 2025 Czech Republic MotoGP, hoping to return for the Austrian Grand Prix.
Maverick's Racing Stats
Here's a quick look at Maverick's career numbers:
By Season
| Season | Class | Motorcycle | Team | Race | Win | Podium | Pole | FLap | Pts | Plcd | WCh |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 125cc | Aprilia RSA 125 | Blusens by Paris Hilton Racing | 17 | 4 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 248 | 3rd | – |
| 2012 | Moto3 | FTR M312 | Blusens Avintia | 15 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 207 | 3rd | – |
| 2013 | Moto3 | KTM RC250GP | Team Calvo | 17 | 3 | 15 | 2 | 3 | 323 | 1st | 1 |
| 2014 | Moto2 | Kalex Moto2 | Paginas Amarillas HP 40 | 18 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 274 | 3rd | – |
| 2015 | MotoGP | Suzuki GSX-RR | Team Suzuki Ecstar | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 97 | 12th | – |
| 2016 | MotoGP | Suzuki GSX-RR | Team Suzuki Ecstar | 18 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 202 | 4th | – |
| 2017 | MotoGP | Yamaha YZR-M1 | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 18 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 230 | 3rd | – |
| 2018 | MotoGP | Yamaha YZR-M1 | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 18 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 193 | 4th | – |
| 2019 | MotoGP | Yamaha YZR-M1 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | 19 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 211 | 3rd | – |
| 2020 | MotoGP | Yamaha YZR-M1 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | 14 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 132 | 6th | – |
| 2021 | MotoGP | Yamaha YZR-M1 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 95 | 10th | – |
| Aprilia RS-GP | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | ||||
| 2022 | MotoGP | Aprilia RS-GP | Aprilia Racing | 20 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 122 | 11th | – |
| 2023 | MotoGP | Aprilia RS-GP | Aprilia Racing | 20 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 204 | 7th | – |
| 2024 | MotoGP | Aprilia RS-GP | Aprilia Racing | 20 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 190 | 7th | – |
| 2025 | MotoGP | KTM RC16 | Red Bull KTM Tech3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54* | 11th* | – |
| Total | 256 | 26 | 75 | 26 | 24 | 2793 | 1 | ||||
By Class
| Class | Seasons | 1st GP | 1st Pod | 1st Win | Race | Win | Podiums | Pole | FLap | Pts | WChmp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 125cc | 2011 | 2011 Qatar | 2011 France | 2011 France | 17 | 4 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 248 | 0 |
| Moto3 | 2012–2013 | 2012 Qatar | 2012 Qatar | 2012 Qatar | 32 | 8 | 22 | 7 | 4 | 530 | 1 |
| Moto2 | 2014 | 2014 Qatar | 2014 Americas | 2014 Americas | 18 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 274 | 0 |
| MotoGP | 2015–present | 2015 Qatar | 2016 France | 2016 Great Britain | 189 | 10 | 35 | 15 | 12 | 1741 | 0 |
| Total | 2011–present | 256 | 26 | 75 | 26 | 24 | 2793 | 1 | |||
Maverick's Personal Life
Maverick was given his unique first name because his father was a big fan of the movie Top Gun.
Maverick has a cousin named Isaac Viñales who is also a motorcycle racer. Isaac has competed in the 125cc, Moto3, and Moto2 World Championships. As of 2023, Isaac races in the World Superbike series. Sadly, another cousin, Dean Berta Viñales, who was also a motorcycle racer, passed away at 15 years old in 2021 after a collision during a race.
See also
In Spanish: Maverick Viñales para niños
