Maverick Vinales out of Silverstone MotoGP due to injury amid KTM exit rumours

KTM has confirmed that Pol Espargaro will replace Maverick Vinales at the MotoGP British Grand Prix, as new injury details have emerged amid rumours of an early Tech3 exit.

Maverick Vinales has battled an ongoing shoulder injury since last year’s German Grand Prix, with the 10-time MotoGP race winner struggling to recapture the form he showed on the KTM in the early stages of 2025.

In recent weeks, as his future with KTM in MotoGP grew more uncertain, he has engaged in a public war of words with the brand over how it has handled contract negotiations.

Last week, reports began to surface that Tech3 and KTM were looking at the possibility of parting ways with Vinales with immediate effect - claims the latter shut down on social media.

But Vinales will be absent from this weekend’s Silverstone round to continue recovering from his shoulder injury, after a previously undiagnosed tear was discovered.

It’s unclear how long he will be off the bike for.

“During the summer break, we kept looking for the reason why I wasn't getting the strength back in external rotation in my left arm, while the internal rotation had a significant improvement over the last few months,” Vinales said.

“Further medical tests showed that, although my supraspinatus has fully healed, I also have a small tear in the infraspinatus that we didn't realise until last week.

“We're now working on the best recovery plan.

“It's not the best news, as the second part of the season starts now. I don't know how long it's going to take, but I will put everything as always into this recovery.”

Tech3 and KTM have called up test rider Pol Espargaro to replace Vinales at Silverstone.

It will mark his first appearance of the season, having suffered an injury earlier in the year, while much of his time has been take up by development of the 850cc bike.

“I have mixed feelings about this,” Espargaro said.

“On one hand, I feel sad; it's never nice to jump on the bike in this situation, when a rider is injured and can't race, especially when it's Maverick.

“That's a real shame. On the other hand, racing is in my blood.

“I've been racing all my life, and I miss it so much, so this is a great opportunity for me too.

“I've been with Tech3 my whole career, and I feel part of the family, so I always feel comfortable when I go back to this garage.

“I'll need a bit of time to adapt back to the category, since I've mostly been testing the RC16 for the new project and haven't been on the 1000cc bike in a while, but after a couple of sessions, I'll be ready.

“I'm looking forward to racing and doing my best to get Tech3 some good results.”