Overview
- Tech3 KTM confirmed that Maverick Vinales will not race at the San Marino Grand Prix as he continues rehabilitation for a persistent left‑shoulder problem that team checks have reported includes a small tear in the infraspinatus.
- Pol Espargaro has been named to replace Vinales at Misano after standing in at Silverstone and Aragon, where he scored points at Silverstone and finished 16th at Aragon.
- Espargaro faces a mixed programme that could require switching between KTM’s current 1000cc race bike on Michelin tyres and the factory’s developing 850cc prototype on Pirelli tyres, a pattern he described as “1000, 850, 1000, 850.”
- Tech3 says its priority is supporting Vinales’ recovery while using Espargaro as a professional stand‑in, even as earlier reporting said KTM had considered keeping Vinales off the rest of the season because of form and contract tensions.
- The situation leaves Vinales’ 2027 seat uncertain and raises a second‑order issue for KTM as test obligations for the 850cc project could reshape who races and who tests if Vinales remains sidelined.