Catalan Grand Prix runner-up Maverick Vinales has become the first rider to be issued an official stewards’ warning for contravening the series’ new tyre pressure rule.
Vinales finished second to Aprilia team-mate Aleix Espargaro after having led the majority of the race, restarted following an incident-filled initial start that had led to a red flag suspension.
In a document issued post-race, MotoGP announced that Vinales “was found running tyre pressures lower than the parameters advised by the official tyre supplier”, that being Michelin.
A tyre pressure crackdown – hugely unwanted by the riders – was discussed for much of the first half of the season before a minimum tyre pressure rule was officially implemented starting from Silverstone, the first race after the summer break.
It was initially monitored through random checks before an automatic monitoring system was fully introduced starting with Barcelona this weekend.
To contravene the rule, the tyre pressure needed to be under the limit for 50% of the laps making up the race distance (30% for races 15 laps or under, which will usually mean sprint races). At Barcelona on Sunday, this will have equated to 12 laps below the limit or more.
When told by The Race he had been announced as in breach during the post-race press conference, Vinales said: “Oh, really? Ah, the sensor is not OK!”
Vinales’ infringement appears logical because he had spent so much of the race in clean air, leading for 19 laps.
Although it was not announced which tyre was below the limit, his front tyre pressure would’ve otherwise gone up running behind other bikes, which has been the major factor behind riders’ opposition to the rule – because trying to start with a higher pressure to avoid a possible penalty in theory means you are even more vulnerable to having said pressure spiral out of control in traffic.
Vinales agreed with The Race that running so much in clean air was “probably” the explanation.
“But you can see that it didn’t help because at the end my front was destroyed,” he added. “But the rules are the rules, I get the warning, we will play the joker in another track. It is OK, it doesn’t matter.
Look at that front tyre! 😱
How is Maverick still lapping so quickly! 🤯#CatalanGP 🏁 pic.twitter.com/N6mBFJyLf3
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) September 3, 2023
“The important thing is we look for the safety. And… it’s strange, because my lap count [on the dashboard, showing laps required over the limit] was OK. Maybe something with the sensor, I don’t know. We’ll see.”
“It’s always good to be the first one!” he then joked.
Under the tyre pressure penalty system announced ahead of Silverstone, Vinales’ first-offence warning means that any future breach will result in a three-second penalty, then a six-second penalty and finally 12-second sanctions.
MotoGP has repeatedly emphasised that a tyre pressure infringement is a technical infringement and that those “normally result in disqualification”, with this year’s lenience temporary “as the system is new and is being brought in mid-season”.
