KTM is reportedly considering dropping Maverick Vinales from its MotoGP line-up before the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. The 2026 MotoGP season is scheduled to resume at the Silverstone circuit in the UK on 7–9 August.
According to Motorsport.com, Maverick Vinales' criticism of KTM and tensions with Tech3 CEO Guenther Steiner have accelerated the process of his removal from the KTM MotoGP project. A shoulder injury sustained by Vinales in Germany last year, which has not yet fully healed, is also cited as a factor in his potential removal.
Maverick Vinales is set to leave KTM at the end of the 2026 MotoGP season. However, the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team is seemingly set for an all-new roster for 2027, preferring to avoid any continuation with riders currently associated with the Mattighofen-based brand.
Potential Replacements
Pol Espargaro could replace Maverick Vinales at the British Grand Prix and potentially for the remainder of the 2026 MotoGP season. Espargaro, a KTM test rider, was unable to replace Vinales earlier in the season due to his own injuries. Vinales was previously replaced by Jonas Folger in France, which was the final race Vinales missed following surgery after the US Grand Prix in early April.
Other changes are occurring across the MotoGP grid. Cal Crutchlow will continue to replace Johann Zarco at the British Grand Prix while the Frenchman recovers from a knee injury sustained in a crash at Catalunya. Additionally, Gresini announced that Iker Lecuona will replace Fermin Aldeguer, as Aldeguer remains unfit after fracturing a vertebra at Assen.
