Rossi, Vinales play down qualifying quarrel
Yamaha MotoGP team-mates Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales have played down a qualifying quarrel at Circuit of the Americas.
During an early hot lap, Vinales caught a slower moving Rossi on the inside of Turn 19. The pair came close to contact at the apex, with Vinales forced to back off before shaking his fist in frustration.
The world championship leader, unbeaten as a Yamaha rider after two rounds, then illustrated his displeasure directly to Rossi as they slowed down at the end of their first qualifying run.
Vinales makes clear to Rossi he's not happy with the earlier incident. #AmericasGP #MotoGP Q2 pic.twitter.com/Edm00v80AT-- Crash.net MotoGP (@crash_motogp) April 22, 2017
But Vinales had calmed down by the end of the session, in which he finished second to Marc Marquez, with Rossi claiming the final front row place.
"Well let's say it's something that happens on the track," he said. "I was on a good lap, Valentino didn't see me... It's difficult to understand the situation. Anyway, it happened and it's normal.
"It can happen with Valentino or many other riders, because when you are on a good lap you are trying to finish it. There were a lot of people in that sector. Anyway I'm happy. We did a great job and have worked hard; today I took the 100% from the Yamaha."
Rossi, who has been on both sides of similar situations with former team-mate Jorge Lorenzo, said he simply hadn't seen Vinales.
"Sincerely I don't see nothing and I haven't had time to watch the practice [on TV] yet," Rossi commented. "We don't touch, because I don't feel nothing. But after the finish line I see Maverick say something to me and I think, 'f**k! What's happened?'
"Maybe the problem was that a lot of riders push at the out-lap and when you arrive close to T4 they slow down. So maybe I slow down also, but I didn't see Maverick behind me unfortunately."
Vinales and Rossi are currently first and second in the world championship, The Doctor trailing his young team-mate by 14 points after 3-2 race finishes compared with a perfect 1-1 for the Spaniard.
