Vinales: I expect to be fast here too

Maverick Vinales 'expects to be fast' in front of his home fans at Aragon this weekend, as he chases what would be a first MotoGP podium at the Spanish venue.

Vinales' record as the only Yamaha rider to win in the last two and a half years suffered a scare at the hands of Fabio Quartararo last Sunday at Misano.

Meanwhile, Vinales went on to complete the podium, his sixth rostrum appearance of the season, to hold a five-point advantage over team-mate Valentino Rossi in the championship standings.

“After the Misano podium I'm feeling extra optimistic about coming here in Aragon. Like every Spanish round, this GP is very special to me because the fans and atmosphere are great, and I really like this track," Vinales said.

"We have been doing good work in the previous rounds, so I expect to be fast here too. We will try to stay focused on our goal, we want to keep improving during every race weekend.

"We‘ve seen our potential get better and better since starting the second half of the season, so I think that we can do a good job.”

Team director Massimo Meregalli said: “We have travelled straight from the team‘s and Vale‘s home GP to Maverick's home race.

"Maverick has built up some good momentum, having scored two third places in a row, and he really likes the Aragon track. His fans can rest assured that he will be 100% committed to get another top result this weekend."

The Aragon MotoGP round takes place between 20-22 September 2019.