Maverick Viñales was announced this Thursday as a rider for the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team in the next MotoGP season. However, before signing with the Austrian manufacturer, various scenarios were considered for the current Aprilia rider.
Ricard Jové revealed on the Dura la Vita podcast that the Spaniard was very close to joining Pramac Ducati: ‘Indeed, Viñales had not just one, but several options. His initial priority was Ducati – and he had options with Ducati and contacts within Ducati. I think I can say that he was very close to Pramac Ducati’.
However, Viñales ended up moving to KTM Tech3, and the TV commentator analyzed the situation: ‘That’s when the possibility emerged that Pramac might not be with Ducati, which led to this second option that fortunately Viñales had with KTM, which was eventually signed’.
With Viñales and Enea Bastianini in Tech3, Jové has no doubts that KTM’s lineup for next year will be very strong: ‘It’s huge news because they will have a very strong team’.