Maverick Vinales says he is considering sitting out further races after this weekend’s Indonesian Grand Prix to recover from a shoulder injury, and may withdraw from the rest of the MotoGP season if necessary.
Vinales suffered the first major injury of his premier class career at the German Grand Prix in August, where he broke his shoulder in a highside on a wet track in qualifying.
After skipping that race and the following round in Czechia, the Tech3 KTM rider attempted to make a comeback following the summer break in Austria, only to realise he needed more time before getting back on the bike.
It wasn’t until two rounds later in Barcelona that he made a full return, but results have proven hard to come by, with 13th place the best result he has achieved in the ensuing three grands prix.
Having already made it clear that he won’t feel 100% until the start of the 2026 season, Vinales revealed that he will talk to Tech3 and KTM about taking a break from racing after Indonesia to focus on his recovery.
“It’s outrageous, I lose more than a second in sector two of the circuit, in four corners,” he said after finishing 19th out of 20 riders in Friday practice. “I think it’s more sensible to stop, build up my fitness and then come back.
“I have no strength, I’m in a lot of pain and I have sudden pain. We thought it would improve on the bike, but we haven’t improved at all, just a little bit of mobility, but not strength.
Maverick Vinales, Red Bull KTM Tech 3
Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images
“Imagine Phillips Island in two weeks, which is all high-speed direction changes, I wouldn’t be able to do a single lap. For us, and especially for me, the best thing is to stop. It makes no sense to be doing 15th or 18th.
“The idea is to stop on Sunday but we’ll see because I have to talk to the team. I think the sensible thing to do now is to stop and wait until I’m well. I need to be 100%, even 80%, but right now I’m far from that. I thought I had more strength, but on this circuit I’m really feeling it.”
Four rounds remain on the 2025 calendar after Indonesia, with MotoGP visiting two more countries in Asia-Pacific (Australia and Malaysia) before returning to Europe for the final double-header in Portugal and Spain.
Vinales said he is open to sitting out the rest of the four races and returning to action at the Valencia test in November, given that would be his only opportunity to test the 2026 KTM until the start of pre-season testing in February 2026.
“Now I’m [considering] stopping and recovering as much as the pain in my shoulder allows,” he said. “But what we’re thinking is that the sooner I stop, the sooner I’ll recover. We’re talking about getting to Valencia for the post-season test.
“It was worth trying because I understand that I have to stop. If I hadn’t tried, the regret would have been enormous. Now I know I have to stop. I can’t recover between races; there’s no time to recover.”
Explaining a timeline for recovery for shoulder injuries of his level, he said: “The first month is with the arm in a sling, from month two to four, recovering mobility, and I’m in month two and a half, and from month four to six, a little strength.
“After six months, you can already use strength, but half a year puts me into the next season.”
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– The Autosport.com Team
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