MotoGP: Yamaha Team Suspends their Rider

In a statement issued by Yamaha on Thursday morning ahead of this weekend’s second Red Bull Ring race, it says it has withdrawn Vinales’ entry from the 11th round of the championship.

A statement from the team read: “Yamaha regrets to announce that Maverick Vinales‘ entry to this weekend‘s Austrian MotoGP event has been withdrawn by the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team.

“The absence follows the suspension of the rider by Yamaha due to the unexplained irregular operation of the motorcycle by the rider during last weekend‘s Styria MotoGP race.

“Yamaha‘s decision follows an in-depth analysis of telemetry and data over the last days.

“Yamaha‘s conclusion is that the rider‘s actions could have potentially caused significant damage to the engine of his YZR-M1 bike which could have caused serious risks to the rider himself and possibly posed a danger to all other riders in the MotoGP race.

“The rider will not be replaced at the Austrian GP.

“Decisions regarding the future races will be taken after a more detailed analysis of the situation and further discussions between Yamaha and the rider.”