Vinales scored his first grand prix win since 2021 on Sunday at the Circuit of the Americas, having taken victory in the sprint and also qualified on pole.
Previously leading from start to finish in the sprint, Vinales didn’t get the best of launches in the grand prix and was bumped down to 11th after contact at Turn 1.
But he fought his way back through the field to take the lead on lap 13 of 20 and got to the chequered flag 1.7 seconds clear of the field.
Vinales revealed after the race that he had a clutch issue from the morning warm-up that “worried” his Aprilia team which ultimately forced him into a fightback.
“Actually, this morning I had an issue with the clutch and the team was quite worried,” Vinales said on Sunday afternoon.
“So, they didn’t really want to touch anything. I had the same thing in the race, but I was not bad. I was second, third, so that was ok.
“But I saw Pecco [Bagnaia] enter and push me very wide. But because also Jorge [Martin] was on the inside, so that was a racing incident and after that I said ‘no, come on, no!’
“So, I kept concentrated, and I kept believing that I was able to do it.
Source: Autosport