Maverick Vinales will switch crew chief’s for the Catalan Grand Prix following the departure of Esteban Garcia, with ex-Valentino Rossi man Silvano Galbusera taking over the role.
Yamaha’s Vinales has undergone a tough start to 2021 as he has continued to lack consistent speed, an early victory in the opening race of the year in Qatar not being sustained as he has slipped to sixth in the riders points-41 behind new team-mate Fabio Quartararo- having not stood on the rostrum in the subsequent five contests.
The Japanese manufacturer therefore has elected to replace Vinales’ crew-chief Garcia-who has worked with the Spaniard since ’19-with Galbusera, who worked with ex-team-mate Rossi for six years at Yamaha in an effort to find greater consistency for Vinales.
Yamaha Team Director Massimo Merigalli says he is “grateful” to Garcia for the “dedication and passion” he has put on display with Vinales since linking up, but said the “sad occasion” was the best decision for both parties.
“Esteban joined our team in 2019. He and Maverick had already worked together before in 2013 and won the Moto3 World Championship that year,” said Merigalli.
“We are very grateful to Esteban for his dedication and passion during our time spent together, which led to eleven podiums for Maverick, including four wins, three second places, and four third places.
“Saying ‘Goodbye’ to one of our crew members is always a sad occasion, but it was a mutual decision based on what’s best for both parties. We wish Esteban all the best for the future.”
Galbusera replaced long-time Rossi crew-chief Jeremy Burgess for the ’14 premier class campaign, though would split with the seven-time premier class champion prior to the conclusion of the ’19 term after falling from third in the points the previous year to seventh with just two rostrums scored.
Inconsistency has plagued Vinales’ Yamaha tenure so far, the nine-time MotoGP race winner having managed a pair of third-place points finishes as his best with the factory team despite showing blinding speed at times.
He has failed to finish higher than fifth since his victory in the opening contest of the ’21 campaign while team-mate Quartararo has only been off the podium twice, three wins catapulting him to a 26 point series lead over Pramac Ducati’s Johann Zarco.
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